Z Gorres In Stable Condition

Z Gorres, the Filipino bantamweight star who collapsed and underwent brain surgery following a points win on Friday in Las Vegas, is said to be in stable condition after surgery, doctors at Vegas' University Medical Center announced.

There was real concern for 27-year-old Gorres, who was placed in a medically induced coma after having part of his skull removed to relieve pressure on his brain, and maybe be unable to come through the intense surgery. But it's looking more and more like he will, and even though his active career as a boxer is surely over, his life will continue.

It's been a gigantic week for Filipino boxing, with Manny Pacquiao destroying Miguel Cotto on Saturday. We narrowly avoided another tragedy in the sport, and it quickly brought back the memories of the horrible month of July. It's a reminder that this sport is no game, even for someone as talented and prepared as Gorres.

The BTBC's thoughts and prayers go out to Z Gorres and his family.

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Pacquiao Outclasses Cotto In Massacre

Manny Pacquiao TKO 12 Miguel Cotto

Manny Pacquiao lined up the shot with the cunning of a pool shark, and when his right hand flashed out and drilled Miguel Cotto on the chin in the third round, the Puerto Rican suddenly found himself on his back. A gasp went up in the pro-Cotto side of the MGM Grand, and it looked momentarily like boxing’s proudest fighter was on his way to retirement.

Going into the WBO welterweight title fight between both elite fighters Miguel Cotto and Manny Pacquiao at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas, there was a lot of discussion in the boxing community about the manner in which the fight was going to be won and lost. To say the undercard was shabby would be an understatement, but the main event was something to treasure forever.

Cotto’s best moment came in the opening round, and although he kept it close in the first half of the fight, he never had Pacquiao in serious trouble. And as the rounds went by, Cotto’s irreversible slide just got steeper.

The fight plan that Cotto had drawn up, along with his new trainer Joe Santiago, was to establish a potent jab and to force the Filipino backwards. However, in retrospect, it might have been better if Cotto had immediately jumped on Pacquiao and gone all-out for the kayo. But he was morphed into a prudent tactician on the night, and a quick blitz was not part of the blueprint. That blueprint was out of the window in the 4^th round, after Pacquiao landed a sharp left uppercut that saw Cotto fall to the canvas for the second time in the fight.

After five rounds, Cotto had won 2, but should have won 4, had he been born with a bit more awareness. Instead of being 49-46 up, he was 48-45 down. By the seventh round, Cotto’s gas tank was perilously close to empty, but Pacquiao gave him no favours, backing him up into the ropes on every opportunity.

From then on it was brutal. Referee Bayless had more than enough opportunities to stop the contest, but failed to act until the final round. Cotto bravely fought on with a cut over his right eye, and deep swelling covering his eyes and making him look like a panda. Cotto’s wife Melissa had seen enough, and walked out after the tenth round.

Pacquiao was again at his sublime best, but the lack of authority to force the stoppage by Cotto’s corner and on the referee’s behalf, tarnished his amazing achievement. A bout with Mayweather is a must for Team Pacquiao as he reaches the bracket of All Time Greatness.

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Z Gorres Collapses On The Eve Of Pacquiao-Cotto

Just as the world is preparing for the mega-fight between his country's hero Manny Pacquiao and Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto, a boxing nightmare occurred in Las Vegas, as Filipino prospect Z “The Dream" Gorres collapsed after improving his record to 31-2-2 with a 10-round unanimous decision verdict over Columbian Luis Melendez at the House of Blues in Mandalay Bay by 98-90, 98-90 and 97-91.

After out-boxing his opponent over nine and a half rounds, the talented 27-year-old Z Gorres, was knocked down in the tenth and final round. He survived the bell, but shortly after the announcement of the verdict, reports suggested that Gorres walked back to his corner unsteadily and eventually collapsed. He was later rushed to the UMC Hospital in Las Vegas.

Gorres suffered a subdural hematoma and had to undergo emergency surgery. The Filipino fighter is in a medically-induced coma and is scheduled to have further tests over the weekend.

Gorres is one of the top bantamweight boxers on the planet, and has battled against the best of the division. He battled to a draw against the trash-talking Vic Darchinyan but lost a close and scrappy controversial decision to Mexican, Fernando Montiel, who he was scheduled to fight on February 13^th in a rematch at the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel.

The BTBC's thoughts and prayers go out to Z Gorres and his family.

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Pacquiao and Cotto Weigh-In: Fireworks Await

WBO welterweight champ Miguel Cotto and people’s champ Manny Pacquiao both weighed in under their contracted weight of 145 pounds, in front of a massive crowd at the famed MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KOs), tipped the scales at 144 pounds.

Miguel Cotto (34-1, 27 KOs), weighed in bang on the contacted catchweight of 145 pounds, ahead of his seconds defence of his WBO belt. Freddie Roach and Joe Santiago had a minor kerfuffle, but nothing severe, enough to catch the eye of many fans and adding more spice to the November 14’s fight.

The 12-round bout is the main event of the “Firepower” pay-per-view event, and will be broadcasted live on HBO PPV.

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Johnny Nelson...Nigga, Please!

After a close fight between local lad Matthew Hatton and Lovemore N’Dou for the South African’s IBO welterweight title was scored a draw, Johnny Nelson showed his disgust at the end result.

In his opinion, Hatton was winning by a country mile, 5 or 6 rounds. The fight was very close, but 6 rounds? Seriously?

In The Boxing Tribune's opinion, his comment duly deserved a nigga, please accolade.

Dedicated to the late, great Ol' Dirty Bastard, the heart and soul of the Wu Tang Clan, the "Nigga, Please!" award will be given to a fighter, event or situation that is just plain stupid enough to garner ODB's famous phrase of disgusted disbelief, "Nigga, Please!"

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Hatton Fails In Title Bid, Samuels-Renda FOTY Candidate!

Lovemore N’Dou D 12 Matthew Hatton

In a decent starter before Pacquiao-Cotto, Matthew Hatton put in his best performance of his up and down career, by drawing with South African Lovemore N’Dou.

N’Dou showed his class in the earlier rounds, opening a cut over Hatton’s eyelid in the second round. The middle rounds were tight, with the Sky team scoring them for Hatton. With no clear indication of a winner, both fighters raised their glove after a gruelling twelfth round.

Hatton’s disappointment came after a tight 12 rounds, which both fighters won clear rounds, but with many evenly fought rounds, the judges declared a draw. Judge John Coyle scored the bout 115-114 to Hatton. Judge Steve Marshall scored the fight 115-114 in favour of N’Dou and judge Tom Marshall, who scored the Haye - Valuev contest at 116-112, scored it 114-114.

Lovemore N’Dou seemed to land the more scoring shots, even though the computer disagreed, with Hatton landing 91 to N’Dou’s 78. The BTBC scored it 114-114.

On the undercard, 24 year old puncher Cello Renda, was stopped in a definite fight of the year contender by journeyman Paul Samuels.

In the opening round of their fight that was pointlessly scheduled for eight, Renda knocked down the in-rushing Samuels with a crisp left hook. Samuels came off the canvas and rocked Renda with hard right hands and eventually won the round.

In an all-action second round, Renda gained the upper hand, landing and throwing more frequently than his older opponent. Then, out of the blue, a boxing rarity happened. A double knockdown! As both fighters traded heavy shots simultaneously, Renda and Samuels fell to the canvas. Renda was up at 5, while Samuels barely beat the count, rising up at 9. Renda put his foot on the throttle, throwing punches left, right and center. He probably punched himself out at this point.

Samuels went for broke in the 3^rd, tasting victory against the dangerous Cello. Samuels landed with every punch that was thrown and the helpless Renda was stopped by referee Terry O’Connor. What a fight!

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BTBC Fight of the Week

Saturday, November 14^th

^{Miguel Cotto vs. Manny Pacquiao}

<sup>(WBO Welterweight Title)

MGM Grand, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA</sup>

^{The Breakdown:}

^{Miguel Cotto: 34-1 (27 KO), Rated #1 at Welterweight by The BTBC, Rated #5 on the most recent BTBC Pound-for-Pound list.}

^{Age: 29}

^{Height: 5' 7}

^{Reach: 67"}

^{Stance: Orthodox}

^{Career Achievements: 2000 Olympic Silver Medallist,}

^{Former WBO Jr. Welterweight Champ (6 defences)}

^{Former WBA Welterweight Champ (4 defences)
Reigning WBO Welterweight Champ (1 defence)}

^{Notable Opposition: Pauiel Malignaggi (Win via UD 12, Draw), Carlos Quintana (Win via RTD 5), Zab Judah (Win via TKO 11), Shane Mosley (Win via UD 12), Antonio Margarito (Loss via TKO 11), Joshua Clottey (Win via SD 12)}

Pre- Fight Quote: “We’ve trained very hard for this fight and I’m in excellent shape. It will be a great night for boxing and for the Puerto Rican people.”

^*********

^{Manny Pacquiao: 49-3-2 (15 KO), Rated #2 at Jr. Welterweight by The BTBC, Rated #1 on the most recent BTBC Pound-for-Pound list.}

^{Age: 30}

^{Height: 5' 6" 1/2}

^{Reach: 67"}

^{Stance: Southpaw}

^{Career Achievements: Former WBC Flyweight Champ (2 Defenses)
Former IBF Super Bantamweight Champ (4 Defenses)
Former WBC Super Featherweight Champ
Former WBC Lightweight Champ}

^{Notable Opposition: Marco Antonio Barrera (Win via TKO 11, Win via UD 12), Juan Manuel Marquez (Draw in 12, Win via SD 12), Erik Morales (Loss via UD 12, Win via TKO 10, Win via KO 3), Oscar Larios (Win via UD 12), Oscar De La Hoya ­(Win via RTD 8), Ricky Hatton (Win via KO 2)}

Pre-Fight Quote: “This fight is the most important fight in my boxing career because if I win this fight, I think it’s another history in boxing and Philippine boxing and it’s also a big honor to my country, to my family and to me."

^*********

Paulie The Sicilian's Prediction: It's gonna be ugly...Pacquiao won't knock Cotto out flat like Hatton; He's gonna poke him bloody...It's gonna be like watching a man beaten to death with the receiver of a telephone...The moment Cotto slows down, bleeds or gets wobbled, it's being stopped...Cotto will get zero chance to recover and make a comeback..."History" must be fulfilled and Arum's already got his plans...

Cotto is a very live underdog, but all he has going for him is that he punches hard...Fine, he has a chance, but where do people get off seeing Cotto suddenly becoming a Juan Manuel Marquez counter-puncher? When did you ever see Cotto come into the ring with a coherent game plan? He's always fought a black and white style and now, especially with the degradation of his corner, he will come in doing what he always does: punch and if that doesn't work, punch more.

Pacquiao has Roach on his side, who I'm sure has done his homework and has a Plan A, B and C ready to be executed. IMO, just as much as the built-in contractual cheats, having a real trainer in Pacquiao's corner will be the real decisive factor in the fight.

I see Manny coming on fast and strong because every second the fight lasts, Cotto has a greater chance of landing something big. Around the third, Pacquiao will be busted up. He'll fight on bravely, but will not be able to look to his corner to help recover and change the tide.

The end comes in the fifth with a flustered Cotto up against the ropes and Pacquiao throwing shots, rapid-fire style. Despite Cotto blocking most of the punches, the ref waves off the fight just as Cotto's own corner is about to throw in the towel...Bob Arum orgasms in his pants: Pacquiao TKO 5.

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Firepower: The BTBC Suggested Retail Price

Firepower:

Manny Pacquiao vs. Miguel Cotto
Daniel Santos vs. Yuri Foreman
Jesus Soto Karass vs. Alfonso Gomez
Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. vs. Troy Rowland

Before each major pay per view the members of the Boxing Tribune Blue Corner will make a bid on what they'd be willing to pay to see the event. The numbers will then be tabulated and the real value of the event will be established.

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5 Fights That Define Miguel Cotto

Miguel Cotto L TKO 11 Antonio Margarito, 7/26/2008

Cotto suffered a brutal beating at the hands of "The Tjuana Tornado," Antonio Margarito in the biggest fight of his career up to that point.

The controversy exists about whether Margarito was using loaded hand wraps, but there's no controversy about the fact that Cotto absorbed a tremendous amount of punishment that may still be weighing on his psyche.




Miguel Cotto UD Shane Mosley, 11/10/2007

Cotto might have been catching Shane Mosley at the right time, but "Sugar" showed that he still had plenty of life left in his 36-year old body.

Mosley fought an extremely close fight and finished very strong to lose a close decision.

But Cotto proved two things with this win: He could box as well as slug and, most importantly, he belonged among the elite of the sport.


Miguel Cotto TKO 11 Zab Judah, 6/9/2007

A bloodied and severely tested Cotto was pushed to the brink by the supremely talented Zab Judah. After being buzzed early on, Cotto pushed forward with the full support of a Madison Square Garden crowd and eventually wore Judah down.

Despite some controversy regarding several low-blows, Cotto took care of business and established himself as a real force at 147.

Miguel Cotto RTD 5 Carlos Quintana, 12/2/2006

In his first real fight at Welterweight, Cotto unleashed a savage attack on Quintana to capture the vacant WBA Welterweight title.

A game and talented Quintana appeared to be overmatched against a highly motivated and mean-spirited Cotto.




Miguel Cotto TKO 5 DeMarcus Corley, 2/26/08

Far from "Just Another Defense" of his Jr. Welter title, Cotto's adventure with "Chop Chop" saw him meet, and overcome, his first real test.

Despite being knocked down in the first, Corley came back strong in the third and severely wobbled Cotto.

The Puerto Rican champ would survive and eventually stop the quick-fisted southpaw.

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Miguel Cotto & Manny Pacquiao: The Legacies

by Dafs117

The Legacy Of Manny Pacquiao

His legacy so far...

Lehlohonlo Ledwaba – TKO 6 – Took the fight with two weeks notice and destroyed Ledwaba.

Marco Antonio Barrerra – TKO 11 – Came off the canvas to stop the Mexican legend in a thrilling encounter.

Juan Manuel Marquez – D 12 – Fight of the decade contender, Marquez survived three first round knockdowns to earn an epic draw.

Erik Morales – L UD 12 – Lost a close, unanimous decision in their first and only competitive fight.

Erik Morales – TKO 10 – Avenged his third career loss by outlasting the Mexican.

Oscar Larios – UD 12 – Fought a perfect fight against a tough, durable fighter.

Erik Morales – KO 3 – Stopped the shadow of Morales’ former self.

Jorge Solis – KO 8 – The previously unbeaten Solis couldn’t stand the pace of Pacman.

Marco Antonio Barrerra – UD 12 – Comprehensive victory in their rematch.

Juan Manuel Marquez – SD 12 – Gets one over his arch rival, even though Marquez thought he’d won.

David Diaz – TKO 9 – Another win, another weight, another title.

Oscar De La Hoya – RTD 8 – Forces the Golden Boy to retirement by annihilating the face of boxing.

Ricky Hatton – KO 2 – Superb second round knockout with a perfect left hook.

Titles in six different weight class, from flyweight to light welterweight. The best left handed fighter to ever grace the sport, and historian Bert Sugar even agrees with me.

How would a win over Cotto enhance his legacy?

Cotto would enhance Pacquiao’s legacy a little bit in a lot of different ways such as his popularity, nationality, the size and the small number on the right side of his record, Cotto would offer a lot even if he is on the way down.

Cotto is considered as a superstar, a reliable ticket-seller, and a quality fighter. He has a strong Puerto Rican following, which would be impressed if Pacquiao stopped their proud fighter. As Pacquiao learned against De La Hoya and Hatton, when you beat a guy with a huge, loyal fan base, people tend to notice.

Then there’s the nationality, Pacquiao has been touted as “The Mexicutioner” for his performances over the best Mexican fighters of recent times. It can’t hurt to add a big name Puerto Rican to his resume, can it?

On to the size. Cotto is considered as a fully fledged welterweight. He’ll be the first opponent that Pacquiao has faced who’s campaigned at welterweight for a number of years. De La Hoya hadn’t fought at welterweight since he stopped Arturo Gatti in 2001.

And finally, there’s the record. Cotto has only one loss on his record and there’s speculation that it came against a cheating fighter with loaded hand wraps. Some might even perceive him as an undefeated fighter. Pacquiao would be aiming to hand a highly regarded fighter his first controversy-free loss.

The Dangers

After watching Cotto cave in against Antonio Margarito, and immensely struggling to deal with Joshua Clottey, he certainly doesn’t look half as dangerous as he used to be. Cotto isn’t a fast fighter and will probably have big problems against the speed of Pacquiao. After his battering from Margarito, you have to question if Cotto’s power is diminished at 147 pounds. Maybe that won’t be relevant against the smaller Pacquiao, but if Pacquiao can take Cotto’s punches, then suddenly the Rican’s biggest advantage is gone.

Cotto has the potential to saw Pacquiao in half with bodyshots, or even turn out the lights with a single left hook to the jaw. It’s a fight where the risk-reward ratio might be just perfect for both boxers. This will be the first time Cotto will be an underdog going into a fight. Will he thrive under the underdog tag?

The Legacy of Miguel Cotto

His legacy so far...

Lovermore N’Dou – UD 12 – Unanimous decision verdict over the durable Canadian.

Kelson Pinto – TKO 6 – Thoroughly outclassed, Pinto was down three times in the fight. Cotto wins vacant WBO light welterweight title.

Randall Bailey – TKO 6 – Another battering, Bailey down twice with fight stopped due to cuts.

DeMarcus Corley – TKO 5 – Cotto hurt in the 3^rd but came back to stop the over the hill Corley.

Muhammad Abdullaev – TKO 9 – Rematch of the 2000 Olympics final, which Cotto lost, he got his revenge by shutting Abdullaev’s right eye in a decent contest.

Ricardo Torres – KO 7 – The big punching Colombian knocked down Cotto for the first time in his career, but Torres was down in 4 rounds. 5 out of the six finished rounds were scored 10-8.

Paulie Malignaggi – UD 12 – The brash Brooklyn fighter showed true courage by lasting the full 12 rounds.

Carlos Quintana – RTD 5 – Stopped his countryman to win his first welterweight title.

Zab Judah – TKO 11 – In front of a packed pro Cotto Madison Square Garden crowd, Cotto proved that he belonged in the elite class by increasing the decline of Judah.

Shane Mosley – UD 12 – Biggest victory to date, Cotto showed that he could outpoint a quicker fighter.

Antonio Margarito – L TKO 11 – A brutal bloody beating from Margacheato.

Joshua Clottey – SD 12 – A horrific cut over his left eye that needed 20 stitches after the fight, Cotto survived another gut check to scrape a questionable decision.

Two-weight world champion that has big names on his curriculum vitae.

How would a win over Pacquiao enhance his legacy?

Where do I start!? Adding Pacquiao to the list of names on the right side of his record would more than double his current status. The Philipino has looked invincible in his last 3 fights and would be the biggest name on Cotto’s record. He would be remembered as the man that beat Pacquiao, probably the best left handed fighter in the open era.

Pacquiao’s fanbase has grown dramatically in the last 12 months. He has captured the hearts of many laidback boxing fans, and many of them will tune-in on November 14. He’s the hero of the Phillipino people, and you can find many of them lurking on message boards around the web, discussing how their man Pacquiao can beat Bernard Hopkins.

Right now, Pacquiao is on top of the world, so a victory against the Phillipino would bump him up in the pound-4-pound stakes and make him a hall of fame contender. Plus, Pacquiao hasn’t lost since 2005, and as the underdog, Cotto will need to prove that he has all the skills to beat the Pac-monster. He’ll be the second fighter to beat Pacquiao over 126 pounds, following in Erik Morales’ footsteps. The Pacman’s record is (10-1, 7 KOs) over the featherweight limit.

And last but not least, there’s the record. Pacquiao has beaten many great fighters over the decade, including Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera, Juan Manuel Marquez, Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton. Cotto wouldn’t want to be added to the list of great fighters to have been out-foxed by Team Pacquiao.

The Dangers

Again, where do I start!? He’s not only one of the quickest fighters pound-4-pound, but uniquely he has carried his punching power through the ranks and the weight divisions. He has doubts over his chin and stamina, but he doesn’t allow fighters to test his defects. I have doubts over his absorption of body shots, which is Cotto’s prize possession. The doubts must be tested by Cotto if he wants to emerge victorious on November 14.

Pacquiao will be fast, powerful and extremely unorthodox. The odds are stacked against Miguel Cotto, but the fighter has proven time and time again never to doubt his abilities and warrior spirit. Will Pacquiao’s speed be the key to victory?

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Five Fights That Define Manny Pacquiao

Manny Pacquiao KO 2 Ricky Hatton, 5/2/2009

Manny had already shown what he could do against a much larger De la Hoya, now this was to be his second fight as a major player and attraction on the world stage.

Ricky Hatton was the lineal Jr. Welterweight champion and a fixture in the division since 2001. Despite a loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2007, Hatton had never been defeated at his natural weight of 140 lbs.

Pacquiao flattened Hatton in a brutal stoppage that had Hatton stretched out on the canvas for several minutes.

Excellent win for Manny and a strong second chapter to the book entitled, "Manny Pacquiao, Superstar."

Manny Pacquiao RTD 8 Oscar De la Hoya, 12/6/2008

Not his best performance, but certainly his biggest. Manny beat and humiliated The Golden Boy before forcing De la Hoya to quit between rounds eight and nine. Alot has been said about De la Hoya's physical condition coming into the fight and that may or may not detract from the victory for some, but coming into the bout, De la Hoya was a huge favorite and the idea of a Pacquiao win was the punchline to a bad joke for most experts.

Thus began the transformation from Manny Pacquiao, "Fight Fan Favorite" to Manny Pacquiao, "Superstar."

Manny Pacquiao TKO 10 Erik Morales,
1/21/2006

Maybe Morales was on a losing streak when this rematch took place, but there was no denying that this was still "El Terrible."

This was a big match for Manny, who had been beaten by this same man just about a year earlier. It was the official announcement to the world that Manny Pacquiao was for real.



Manny Pacquiao L UD Erik Morales, 3/19/2005

Pacquiao, for the first time in his career, was fighting someone who wasn't looking to walk right through him; Morales was a veteran champion who boxed perfectly and used flawless technique to keep a hard-charging Pacquiao at bay.

What most defined this fight was not Pacquiao losing, but Pacquiao's desire to keep chugging along in his career. He would come back to beat Morales twice in rematches.


Manny Pacquiao TKO 11 Marco Antonio Barrera, 11/15/2003

Manny was unknown by all but the most hardcore of fans and was expected to be just a "stay busy" fight for Barrera. The Mexican warrior was at the height of his fame after having beaten Hamed, Morales, Tapia and Kelley in 4 of his previous 5.

Plans changed drastically, however, as Pacquiao tore into Barrera and beat him at every aspect of the game. He literally steamrolled the "Baby Faced Assassin" and forced Barrera's corner to stop the contest in the 11th.

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Magno vs. The Machine (Stage 3)

Stage 3: Firepower: Cotto vs. Pacquiao

Boxing Tribune editor-in-chief, Paul Magno is looking to edge out in front in his quest to defeat Title Bout Championship Boxing 2.5 in boxing related battle of man vs. machine.

With both camps equal after the opening two stanzas, Magno and Machine will be predicting the outcome of the first superfight of the tightly fought contest, Miguel Cotto vs. Manny Pacquiao.

Can Magno emulate the heroics of John Henry and defeat the machine?

Miguel Cotto vs. Manny Pacquiao

Magno: Even if Cotto can maneuver around all the politics, the contractually implemented cheats and the weight of "history," he still has to deal with Manny Pacquiao.

Manny represents the type of fighter that has wobbled Cotto most often. He's a quick-fisted, awkward southpaw who throws punches from all angles.

Plus, Pacquiao carries the swagger of a fighter who knows he deserves super-stardom.

Aside from having a puncher's chance, Cotto will be in deep waters with nobody there to pull him out. The longer the fight lasts, the more of a chance he has of landing a fight-ending bomb. Unfortunately, I don't think Cotto will make it into the later rounds...

By hook or by crook, Pacquiao will win. My prediction is Manny via 5th, round TKO.

Machine: Manny Pacquiao might have won titles in seven different divisions, but some might argue that Miguel Cotto will be his toughest test to date.

The Philipino made his name in the golden era of featherweight boxing, defeating hall of fame contenders Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera and Juan Manuel Marquez in thrilling fights. His biggest career win must be against The Face Of Boxing, Oscar De La Hoya, when he retired the legend from the sport.

His opponent is the Puerto Rican phenomenon, and has only one defeat on his record, and that was too a convicted cheat. Starting his career at a 140 pounds, he won the vacant WBO strap against previously unbeaten Kelson Pinto before defending his belt against Randall Bailey and Paulie Malignaggi. He moved up to challenge his countryman, Carlos Quintana, and stopped him in the fifth to become a two-weight world champion. Since then, victories over Zab Judah and Shane Mosley has propelled him into a pound-4-pound fighter.

After watching David slay Goliath last weekend, Pacquiao will surely gain confidence of watching another smaller fighter using his speed and athletic ability, to defeat a dangerous opponent. Frankly, that’s what Pacquiao has to do.

Cotto will have the advantage in power, while Pacquiao will have the speed card over Cotto. With arguably the best tactician in the world in his corner, Roach could prove key to Pacquiao’s victory, once again.

It will be interesting to see how Cotto deals with the speed of Pacquiao early on, and how quickly can he change from defense to attack without getting tagged. Pacquiao’s chin is still to be tested at a higher weight, and if Cotto can land early, he could be able to get the P-4-P king out of there inside the opening rounds.

The questions in this fight will be whether Cotto still has mental scars of his horrific assault by Antonio Margarito over a year ago.

Look for Pacquiao to make a razor fast start, slicing Cotto with every opportunity. Cotto maybe wins one round, but it’s painfully one sided. Pacquiao knocks down Cotto in the seventh and the Rican waves the white flag. Pacquiao the winner by technical knockout in the 7^th.

Current Scores: Magno 3-1 (1 KOs), Machine 3-1 (1 KOs)

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Pacquiao-Cotto Does Not Benefit The Welterweight Division

by Dafs117

When two superstars of today are matched-up together, I don’t often complain, especially if it’s in the talent-rich welterweight division. But, I’m struggling to see how the marquee division will enhance its reputation after Saturday’s superfight.

Manny Pacquiao is the welterweight problem child. When a fighter jumps weight classes, it’s hard to be realistic with his possible opponents and marketing strategies. Is he a lightweight, light welterweight or a welterweight? You tell me.

If Pacquiao wins Firepower, he could keep on jumping divisions, confusing many casual fans and leave us hardcore supporters baffled. If he convincingly defeats Miguel Cotto and moves down in weight, Cotto will be dropped out of the elite class. That leaves us with only two elite welterweights, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Shane Mosley, as Pacquiao is defending his 140 pound Ring belt.

A Miguel Cotto defeat can also be seen as a positive move for the weight class, as we would move a step closer to the key of the welterweight matrix. Cotto would be immediately dropped from the chasing pack, and leave the other upcoming fighters, to scamper for his position.

Because the rich men are all at welterweight, you would expect Pacquiao to remain at welterweight if he defeats Cotto on November 14.

If Cotto wins, he would remain as the prime contender for the position of welterweight king. But we would be no closer in cutting down the challengers. You’d still have Floyd Mayweather Jr. Shane Mosley and Miguel Cotto, all unwilling to fight each other. When will logic overpower politics?

That would leave Pacquiao as a fringe contender at welterweight, and an easy target for Floyd Mayweather. He would still be unpredictable and amazingly talented, but as he’s not considered as a legit welterweight by Roach, he could well end up fighting Juan Manuel Marquez for the third time, or face knockout freak Edwin Valero.

Cotto would hunt down Mayweather, and probably be unsuccessful in his attempt. He will face the second best thing, Shane Mosley, in a rematch of their competitive first fight.

The event of the year, could well end up being dilemma of the year, as we keep trying to solve the mystery of the welterweights. Cotto-Pacquiao solves nothing, and just adds even more overpriced fuel, to the fire of boxing clichés.

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Is Cotto On a Downward Spiral?

by Dafs117

“Is Cotto on an irreversible slide?” I wondered after his entertaining bout with the durable Ghanaian Joshua Clottey, on June 13.

In my opinion, Clottey is good, but not a great fighter. He was born to be a difficult opponent, not a Hall of Famer. And winning a split verdict over that type of fighter is usually what happens when a fighter is on the way out, not on the way up.

It made one wonder, if Cotto is on the wane. The theory starts with his personal issues, with his uncle and former long time trainer Evangelista Cotto, which resulted in the promotion of Joe Santiago. With lawsuits hired and fired, Evangelista never gave up in his pursuit of suing the welterweight titleholder. Cotto also split up with his wife on countless times, for reasons I’m not aware of.

His training camp has switched to Florida, which was allegedly a fraction of the rift with Evangelista. He’s fallen a few paces behind Top Rank’s cash cow and next opponent, Manny Pacquiao. Arum had never imagined of holding a bigger attraction than Cotto a few years ago, but after discovering the rough diamond, the Phillipino has stamped his presence all over the sport. Cotto can still make money, but Pacquiao is making history.

He’s had a personality makeover since the Antonio Margarito fight. He was such a dead-pan character for so many years that it’s strange to see him covered in tattoos and sneering a bit.
We’re also seeing more of his children, as if Cotto is trying to re-build the person that had been shattered by Margarito. The stoic, somewhat robotic Cotto, has been replace by a family man, that’s trying to reclaim what Margarito had taken.

Cotto has been dismissive of Margarito’s loaded gloves controversy. As we all know, Margarito was later suspended for the use of illegal handwraps against Shane Mosley, and could well have been armoured against Cotto.

But even if Cotto dismisses the “L” on his record, and us fans place an asterisk next to that bout, you cannot dismiss the physical toll dealt out by Margarito. The demons in Cotto’s mind may have been put to rest by surviving the 12 stanzas against Clottey, but demons still lurk in his body, in his bones and his gray matter.

If the ‘Ghost of Margarito’ is still tap-dancing in Cotto’s skull, Pacquiao may be victorious before the first bell. Fear or no fear, Cotto needs to start trekking if he wants to climb the Pac-Mountain. That trek starts at the press conferences, to gain a psychological advantage over the smaller man. The question “Is Cotto on an irreversible slide?” will be answered on November 14.

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The Masters Of Ducking

by Dafs117

If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, well you know the rest. In boxing though, identifying a duck is never that simple.

Currently in the boxing world, we have two mind-boggling fighters that are head and shoulders above the rest of the pack. Although they have supreme abilities and absurd confidence, both fighters have major defects in their game, like any P-4-P star. That major defect, is their choice of victims.

Someone will be disappointed when Team Pacquiao or Camp Mayweather announce their next opponent. Many will disagree, and for that reason alone, they are touted as “duckers” by the haters.

A Pacquiao hater would argue that he has avoided his kryptonite, Juan Manuel Marquez, since he scraped a victory from the Mexican counterpuncher in the sequel. Others would say that his ridiculous weight demands give his opponents a major disadvantage heading into the fight. For this reason, Pacquiao is simply “ducking” the best opponents out there.

Before Mayweather retired, Pretty Boy’s haters disputed that Mayweather was using De La Hoya to duck Cotto. Clearly there’s more money in a De La Hoya fight, and purely on that reason, Mayweather chose to fight the Golden Boy. Is Mayweather spinelessly ducking his toughest challengers? Or is he using that thing right above his spine and showing his marketing brilliance in letting fighters like Cotto, to build himself up into a bigger attraction by fighting guys like Margarito?

You can’t use the dreaded “D” word in the same sentence as these two quality boxers. If you look back at the calibre of opponents they have faced, it’s incredible. Why would fans want to disrespect a boxer that performs in such a convincing and truly magnificent manner?

As these “ducks” get older, they will one day be ruffled up by a lesser known up and coming fighter. The ducks are currently calm on surface, but in 2010, they’ll be paddling like hell underneath. To avoid being humiliated, they surely must turn towards each other?

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Has Kelly Pavlik Become a Laughingstock?

by Paul Magno

Back when Kelly Pavlik first won the Middleweight title against Jermain Taylor, any sane fan would pretty much have to force himself not to like "The Ghost."

How could you dislike a power-punching, blue-collar champion whose very presence on the world stage seemed to fly in the face of every modern boxing convention?

This kid had grit, heart; A real throwback to when fighters only fought and fans loved them for it.

Now, fast forward to today's announcement by Pavlik promoter, Bob Arum, that Pavlik would be fighting journeyman and former cast member of "The Contender" reality show, Miguel Espino, on PPV from Pavlik's hometown of Youngstown, Ohio on December 19th.

Fine, a tune-up...perfectly understandable if not for the fact that Pavlik had just finished withdrawing from a bout with Paul Williams on December 5th, citing medical complications from a staph infection in his left hand.

Apparently, the two week difference between the bouts will do wonders for a Kelly Pavlik who was reportedly near death due to complications from the infection.

I guess, at this point, everyone can see through the charade. Pavlik's hand is not infected (or at least not to the degree that his people wanted us to believe), his plans never really included Paul Williams and, saddest of all, he simply is not the champion, or man, we thought him to be.

Kelly needs to take a major personal inventory and think about the real low-class, bush league way his career has been handled. He obviously needs a new team around him that will not bother signing fights that he plainly doesn't want to take.

Not only has Pavlik wasted the time of Paul Williams, who was assured that the fight would take place after Pavlik passed a pre-signing physical, but he's wasted the time of the fans who kept expected to be treated to a potentional Fight of the Year, but kept getting disappointed as the delays and postponements from Pavlik stacked up.

The biggest loser in all of this, though, is Pavlik himself, who will be making a fraction of what he was to make against Williams and now has to take the unforgiving lashing about to be unleashed by boxing fans around the globe.

Pavlik has it coming...

Now, let the conversion from blue-collar legend to laughingstock begin.

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Ruiz Next In Line For Hayemaker Homecoming on April 24

The new WBA heavyweight champion, David Haye, has still generated much media attention following his slaying of Goliath Nikolay Valuev. He has already been debating with Vitali Klitschko on British radio about the date of their highly anticipated unification bout.

However, on the undercard of their title contest was John Ruiz, the WBA’s mandatory challenger for the new champion after he stopped journeyman Adnan Serin in the seventh round. A new-look Ruiz team fought with different tactics to their usual boring hugging style. Ruiz came out throwing flurries of punches that forced his opponent back onto the ropes. Ruiz was cut on his forehead, similar to Zab Judah’s cut against Ernest Johnson last year, and as a result of that, the fight date has been moved to April.

David Haye has also broken his right hand, but not to the severity that was first feared from the Englishman’s camp and loyal fans, who travelled out in great number to watch their fighter capture his childhood dream.

This fight does nothing for me and is one prime example of how sanctioning bodies damage boxing. Ruiz is a decent fighter but is not by any stretch of the imagination the top heavyweight contender on the planet. Plus he’s a boring fighter to boot. Who wants to see that fight? No one outside of Ruiz’s family and camp.

Haye on Saturday pumped a miniscule drop of life into the shallow heavyweight division that will be sucked right back out when he fights Ruiz. Haye should be allowed to build on his momentum by facing an Ukranian with the surname Klitschko or Tomasz Adamek in fights the fans would fully embrace. Why torture fans when the sport is struggling to build its fan base?

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You Watt? Sky Sports Gave It To Valuev!

by Dafs117

One of the talking points that got my attention after watching Sky Sports’ coverage of the David vs. Goliath PPV in Nuremberg on Saturday night, was how on earth did Jim Watt gave that fight to Nikolay Valuev. I have to share the wonder and amazement that such an articulate and intelligent commentator can use clichés to brainwash the naive casual boxing public to believe that the fight was competitive.

Watt, who was a fine world champion in his day, in my humble opinion, got this one wrong. His argument that you could not award rounds to the Brit as he was throwing one shot at a time ignored the fact that, while Valuev was throwing more, he was landing nothing. In my fight report and on the forum, I said that Adam Booth landed more punches than Nikolay Valuev, and I still believe I’m right.

But it's much more complicated than that. Haye's single shots were landing most of the time and the Russian was missing. Haye said in the pre-fight press conference that he was going to make Valuev look silly, and he matched up to his comment. The Russian was clueless, clumsy and bamboozled. If you watched the action again and asked yourself who was doing the boxing, there was only one answer. If Valuev would’ve been knocked down in the final round, he wouldn’t have got up. He knew he was truly beaten on the night.

There are many meaningless clichés in boxing. You have to catch the judges' attention by going forward and the challenger has to take the fight to the champion are just some examples of the crap that most writers use to back up their argument.

There is no logic to any of those previous clichés. A boxing match is a boxing match. Another cliché is hit and don't be hit. This should mean something to every judge. It's what Haye executed with a lot of success, from the first bell to the last. There were some moments where he went too long without landing a scoring shot, but nowhere near as long as that lumpy giant Valuev.

Long ago, judges took note of boxing ability into context as well as sheer aggression. Valuev showed a lot of the latter and very little of the former.

Another point I picked up is no-one gave any praise for Haye’s trainer, Adam Booth, who layed out the perfect tactical fight for Haye to execute. Did Haye need to change tactics any time in the fight? No. You could say that every trainer would’ve given him that particular game plan. But not to the extent that everything went Haye’s way throughout the twelve stanzas despite his broken hand.

I can guarantee you that Haye truly frustrated the Beast From The East into submission. Sorry Mr Watt, Haye boxed his heart out and that’s why he’s the new WBA Heavyweight Champion.

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The "Firepower" Timeline

by Dafs117

When Manny Pacquiao dropped Ricky Hatton helpless for the third and final time, boxing fans immediately gossiped about his next demolition.

With Floyd Mayweather announcing his comeback against Juan Manuel Marquez just before the mega fight, we all assumed it would be two eliminators for the highly anticipated fight of the decade.

Logic and fate are two completely different things as a Mayweather rib injury resulted in another Summer postponement, and ultimately burnt any hopes of a Marquez-Pacquiao trilogy or the fight of all fights happening.

Next down on the list was Shane Mosley. After giving Antonio Margarito a battering, he was again a name regularly featured on many Pound-4-Pound lists and was back in the big time where he belonged.

With Mosley willing to come down to 144 to fight the Phillipino, negotiations broke down between the two promotional giants and boxing fans dwelled on what could’ve been.

The names of Paul Williams and Timothy Bradley were branded out, but nothing materialised as Pacquiao was looking for a bigger name to slay.

Out of the background and into the light came Miguel Cotto. A likeable figure in boxing, Cotto had always been considered as a top contender at 147 pounds, before he lost to Margarito.

He quietly went about re-building what he had taken away from him by Margarito, with a win over Michael Jennings in 5. In his real comeback bout, he answered his critics’ attacks about his lack of heart, by fighting through a 20 stitch cut and splitting the judges with Ghanaian Joshua Clottey ahead of the Puerto Rican Day parade.

And that’s it. The timeline of how this bout came the talk of our ever growing community, without the dirty politics, ridiculously over-priced negotiations and a game of golf.

Tomorrow, I’ll be discussing the masters of ducking.

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Magno vs. The Machine (Stage 2 Results)

Stage 2 Results:

After an even first round, The Boxing Tribune editor-in-chief Paul Magno, is still level pegging in his personal battle to top the computer simulator Title Bout Championship Boxing 2.5, in the modern day boxing related battle Man vs. Machine.

With Magno trying to emulate American folk legend John Henry, he could edge into a lead next week with the super bout between Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto.

Nikolay Valuev vs. David Haye: With an impressive performance for someone with one hand, David Haye squeezed out a majority decision in Germany of all place, to win the WBA heavyweight belt and to become the first Brit since Lennox Lewis in 2003 to hold an alphabet trinket at the big guys.

Magno: Haye TKO 7 Valuev
Machine: Haye UD 12 Valuev

Result: David Haye MD 12 Nikolay Valuev

Chad Dawson vs. Glen Johnson: With another perfect execution of the real sweet science, Chad Dawson showed America his full repertois of boxing skills by defeating Glen Johnson via unanimous decision in an uncompetitive bout. As you can see below the outcome was pretty predictable.

Magno: Dawson UD 12 Johnson
Machine: Dawson UD 12 Johnson

Result: Chad Dawson UD 12 Glen Johnson

Next Stage: Manny Pacquiao vs. Miguel Cotto, November 14

Current Scores: Magno (3-1, 1 KO); Machine (3-1, 1 KO)

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