There is nothing more invigorating than witnessing two warriors go at one another in the ring, heavy punches, swapping leather, combinations, a little blood and a lot of guts and heart, what more can a boxing fan ask for?
We as boxing fans want evenly matched fights; we want to see fighters go toe to toe putting their heart, soul, reputation and records on the line.
And this weekend when the six time world champion as well as pound for pound king Manny Pacquiao 49-3-2 (37) squares off against the three time world champ Miguel Cotto 34-1 (27) in a highly anticipated math-up for Cotto’s WBO welterweight strap, we the fans know it is going to be a balls to the wall, all guts and glory fist to the face kind of scrap.
The once beaten Miguel Cotto is a hard nosed warrior with a lot of grit in his gut, how many times have we seen Cotto, battered, bruised and bloodied up and still hang in there to garner the win? With the exception of the Margarito fight, the pride of Puerto Rico has tallied up win after win over credible foe.
Wins over the likes of Carlos Maussa (8th R TKO), Zab Judah (11th R. TKO), and Shane Mosley (UD) has paved the way for Cotto to be the fighter he is today. But in order to be the best of the best, he has to face one bad ass fire cracker, who is ready and willing to pop his opposition into defeat.
P4P King Manny Pacquiao, all though he cannot carry a tune in a bucket, he damn sure can lay down the leather!
The fire fisted fighter has handed down losses to a list of who’s who in the boxing world. All though Eric Morales does hold one win over Pacquiao, Marco Antonio Barrera and Eric Morales who are considered greats, both have fallen victim to Pacquiao twice in their careers. Pacquiao sent boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya into retirement with an eight round shellacking, and not only destroyed but embarrassed UK’s great Ricky Hatton in two rounds.
So it is safe to say, when these two ring warriors collide, hell and fury will take place in entertaining fashion for the fans!
Who wins this shindig?
We all know Cotto is bigger, should be stronger than Pacquiao, but both are tough, and the Pac-Man does have the speed and the ability to slip and move from Cotto while countering.
All though I was impressed with Cotto’s ability to over come a big ass gash over his eye in the Clottey fight, he was hit repeatedly by the Ghana born fighter. If Cotto absorbs punches like that from Pacquiao, it will not be pretty for the Puerto Rican fighter.
On the other hand, I am still a believer that Juan Manuel Marquez should have gotten the nod over Pacquiao, and if Marquez can stun Pacquiao, think what a bigger stronger fighter like Cotto can do.
In order for Cotto to gain the victory in the biggest challenge of his career, Miguel is going to have to corner Pacquiao and wear down Manny. Keep the Pac-Man from being so damn quick, keep Manny from hitting from odd angles, and keep Manny from doing what he does best, win.
All though I am not going to make a prediction for the fight in this article, I will say this fight is going to be a hellacious throw down, maybe one for the ages. Something that will keep the boxing fans buzzing about for weeks to come, what more can boxing fans ask for, when ring warriors collide!
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