|
-Photo Credit: Kenny Perrault/BRC-
Miguel Cotto:
Boxing's "Responsible Grown Up" ... by Martin Wade
Boxing
is a pyramid scheme, and I say that with the utmost affection with
tongue firmly in cheek. If you've followed long enough, the money
flows right up to a tiny little capstone populated by few promotional
entities, a handful of fighters and trainers and about two networks-
and those who enter that top floor do not want to leave. That
institutional force resembles chaos but trust me, it isn't. It is an
illusion meant to render consumers numb-too numb to do anything
constructive enough to force the powerful to organize a rational
structure. Fighters are no longer evaluated on who they engage and the
willingness to engage, they are now marketed based on the digit in the
right hand column and how it looks to the uninformed. Challenges are
no longer essential to building mystique and value on the marketplace,
the longer you avoid them the more likely you can catch a foe
"slipping," making it easy to profit from his still relevant name.
It's a modern rite of passage practiced by all the Big Names, but it
can become a general business practice once people grow comfortable
with guaranteed income in a sport so unpredictable. Rarely can a
"name" fighter come of age in an environment like this one with
Boxing's Top fighters and Top Firms practicing the "risk/reward" model
of doing business- and build a brand rooted in "taking on all comers."
In fact, in a vacuum it would seem that a fighter could never fight
tough fights, and lose some of them while simultaneously working in
good faith with business parties hell-bent on bringing the wheels of
Boxing to an arduous grind. It would take a special individual to swim
these waters without getting dirty, a rare gentleman to navigate with
sharks, get his money while keeping his integrity as a man intact.
Miguel Cotto is such a man, and when he is done, nobody will say a
word about what he did or did not do, which is more than we can say
about his so called superiors.
Every
family, no matter how dysfunctional, is capable of producing at least
one person who is balanced and mature -capable of transcending his
environment. As the oldest, my mother begged me to be bigger than my
idiosyncrasies; but not every person is made up to be the "mature
one," birthdates be damned. Watching Miguel Cotto parlay his
surprising performance against Floyd Mayweather into an unnecessary
challenge of little known WBO Champ Austin Trout was vintage Cotto
because it was the right thing to do. The "Boricua Garden" would have
turned out for any "set up" en route to a 2013 Blockbuster with Canelo
Alvarez but Cotto chose a tall, long southpaw who deserved the
platform -in a right and just world. But Boxing isn't a right and just
world, unless you've followed Miguel Cotto's noble career, so when you
see him again just remember he's everything you want from the sport.
"He fought everybody" is a dated phrase (and complement) unable to
generate Twitter followers and modern celebrity; in fact the phrase
belongs in boisterous barber shops and on the tongues of crusty old
men in fedoras. There are no extra credit points for being the "grown
up" in the room; the man who could accommodate Mayweather's one way
PED testing protocol and Pacquiao insistence you cut off a leg, only
respect. Randall Bailey is still scaring the hell out of prime
Welterweights at 39; Cotto beat him when he was closer to the rep that
compelled Devon Alexander to stink out the joint in Brooklyn. Cotto
beat Mosley when he was still "Mosley," Quintana when he was still
dangerous and Clottey before he went mysteriously passive against
Manny Pacquiao-he got everybody's best shot even when the shot was
loaded. Everybody knows he was victimized by an "in house promotion"
against Antonio Margarito; he could have blown the lid off of Boxing
with what he knew but he chose to say it in Margarito's face before
kicking his ass. Even 50 Cent was disinclined to have a "Twitfit" when
Cotto rebuffed his advances over the summer; deep down Curtis knew he
was dealing with a grown assed man above everything he and his
ex-buddy were "bringing" to Boxing. Miguel Cotto didn't need anything
but his well-earned reputation for a Cinco de Mayo clash with Alvarez
but like most grown-ups he couldn't stand the idea of showing up
underdressed. What Cotto proved last Saturday is that there's a way to
go about this with class and real competitiveness, that you can stay
on the Big Stage if your brand is associated with giving the people
what they want -something Cotto can never be accused of not doing.
The Case
for Cotto vs. Alvarez
Shane
Mosley could be said to have practiced a similar model throughout the
prosperous part of his career, but you could also say he cut
competitive corners to make himself feel better about clashing with
bigger men. Fernando Vargas was a case of too much too soon, of
wanting to fight everybody Right Now before he was at the utmost peak
of his powers. Cotto could stand the wars he eventually saw
because he was already 6 years into his Hall of Fame career; he even
knew what it was like to get off the canvas vs. Ricardo Torres and the
experience was golden for the young fighter. Mosley's willingness to
fight nightmare match-ups like Winky Wright and Vernon Forrest
basically contributed to the available pool of name fighters networks
could choose from. Both Wright and Forrest went on to more big paydays
and carved out careers rooted in Mosley and Vargas' (in the case of
Wright) willingness to take them on. Austin Trout will be alright, his
eye opening performance will get him back in front of the little red
light real soon because Showtime has a way of maximizing the exposure
of a fighter that helped them break ratings records. Cotto is a
natural match-up for Alvarez in more ways than can be considered
and when you stack them up they stand taller than Austin Trout's
5'10". The truth is Alvarez -if he gets past Cotto- is a bigger fish
(for Trout) than if Trout was given first shot at the Mexican. Fans
are sophisticated, and we know if you add Cotto to an aggressive guy
like Alvarez, you can't miss when it comes to satiating the taste for
back and forth action.
Cotto
took the responsible route in facing Trout, something vital for the
sport to replenish itself from one generation to the next; I see no
problem with him coming back in May to attend to PPV duties. Even
Freddie Roach, a "master" at picking opponents that allowed Pacquiao
built-in advantages, admitted that Cotto "chose the wrong guy" in
Austin Trout. That statement alone should make you realize how special
the Puerto Rican banger is because a lot of times "wrong" is merely
code for honorable; and there's a shortage of "honor" in the luxury
penthouses of Boxing. Alvarez is looking for the Mayweather fight but
they won't be able to link up until September, and he's young enough
to bounce back in the event that he defeats Cotto. He could do no
better than the former WBA Jr. Middleweight Champion and we all know
Cotto (after consecutive losses) will show up and represent himself to
the fullest. This isn't a slight on Austin Trout or encouragement to
shut him out but a call for Boxing to continue to reward a man who
went about it in a way that we don't have the power to legislate in
the sport. Trout will get his chances because of men like Cotto, and
hopefully in a couple of years he will be strong enough as a man to
give others an opportunity. Success in anything is not going to
improve you in the "fairness" department and we've been victims of the
two most successful promotional firms and fighters for years now.
Miguel Cotto always symbolized a reprieve from the burden of being a
fight fan. Boxing is that dysfunctional family I spoke about earlier
and Miguel Cotto is a part of it -while not becoming a product of it-
and that is why we can trust him on May 5th. We can ill-afford to make
him start from square one, punishing him for doing what we want all
fighters to do; in fact we should never stand by and allow guys like
Cotto to be sent out to pasture too soon because it sends the wrong
message. The right message is the one he projects: fight everybody,
make deals quickly and with integrity and give the people what they
want- and I for one want to see Cotto go out the right way.
12-06-2012
|