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Monday’s by-invitation-only media roundtable
luncheon brought out several of the top boxing writers from the
New York area to one of the city’s finest and most respected
establishments - the NY Friars Club - for basically one
reason…..Miguel Cotto.
Cotto (23-0 with 19 KO’s) will be making his Madison Square Garden debut tonight, in front of an estimated crowd of 15,000+, and the magnitude of the event has not eluded boxing’s fastest rising star. "Growing up in Puerto Rico I never thought I would ever fight at Madison Square Garden and it‘s very motivating to me," stated the humbled fighter. "I went to the gym when I was eleven years old to lose weight, that’s when I started boxing!"
Another motivating factor for the 24 year old Cotto, while
not publicly admitting so, is his opponent for this, his third,
World Boxing Organization (WBO) Jr. Welterweight title defense;
the dangerous and not unfamiliar Mohammad Abdullaev.
Abdullaev crushed the Puerto Rican National amateur champion’s
(1997-2000) Olympic dream in the opening round of their bout at
the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney; a bout which Abdullaev won
handily, 17-7, en route to earning a gold medal at 139
pounds.
Abdullaev (15-1, 12 KO’s) hasn’t enjoyed the meteoric rise in
his professional career as has Cotto, but sees this fight
against his extremely popular arch-rival as his opportunity to
reach the next level, "At this time he (Cotto) is the best, but
I’m doing all I can to change that and to win this fight!"
The timing couldn’t be better for "Team Cotto" as the 140
pound division is at it’s peak in popularity and more
importantly, it’s profitability; due to the exorbitant amount of
truly talented and exciting boxers currently fighting at the jr.
welterweight level. Floyd Mayweather, Arturo Gatti, Ricky
Hatton, Vivian Harris and Kostya Tszyu, as well as the
undisputed welterweight world champion Zab Judah entertaining
the notion of dropping down, could make this weight class the
richest in all of boxing today!
"Their isn’t a clear #1 at 140lbs., we all have the chance to
be the best," acknowledged Cotto. "The best fighters in our
division are fighting now. Everyone thought Tszyu was #1, he
isn’t anymore - we will see who is the best."
As if Cotto’s popularity and appeal couldn’t get any higher,
his promoter, the legendary Bob Arum of Top Rank, feels that his
fighter will keep improving as a boxer and as a major ticket
seller.
"Cotto is not a complete fighter yet, he is still a work in progress," noted Arum who is excited about Cotto’s future. "He is a kid dedicated to getting better and better, and he will stay at this weight (140 lbs.) for the foreseeable future." Addressing the media Arum also touched on the intangibles not usually thought about by most fighters - but, Miguel Cotto is not like most fighters - "there are many factors outside of boxing which determine a fighter’s status as a box office star, and Cotto has what it takes to be a superstar." "Cotto is an appealing fighter; much more appealing than Trinidad," observed Arum, "He can be much bigger than Tito Trinidad!" This weekend will be a giant piece in the "Miguel Cotto Boxing Superstar" puzzle; not only can he avenge his Olympic defeat at the hands of Abdullaev this Saturday in front of a near capacity Madison Square Garden crowd filled with appreciative Puerto Rican boxing fans, but Cotto will also play host as the Honorary Grand Marshall for New York’s Puerto Rican Day parade the following afternoon. Another of those intangibles that Bob Arum was alluding to, eloquently said by Cotto himself, "When I’m not fighting, I’m with my family; my wife and three children. I sacrifice a lot being away training for my fights, so I want to be with them and stay together." In the night’s co-feature, former world champion Joel Casamayor (31-3, 19 KO’s) will take on the undefeated Almazbek "Kid Diamond" Raiymkulov (20-0 with 12 KO’s) in a lightweight title elimination bout. HBO will begin it’s 'Boxing After Dark' broadcast at 10pm ET.
Mike Indri 6-11-2005
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