Manny Pacquiao is down to 149 lb

MANILA, Philippines - Manny Pacquiao is down to 149 lb and in his morning workout yesterday sported a body that should be good enough to withstand anything Miguel Cotto could offer on Nov. 14.
“I’ve never seen him in better shape,” said conditioning coach Alex Ariza as Pacquiao, shirt off, was sprinting across the Rizal Memorial Stadium grounds, racing with his pet Terrier.
Pacquiao woke up a little late than usual and tipped the scales inside his hotel suite at 149 lb, just four pounds over the catchweight limit of 145 for his WBO welterweight title fight with Cotto.
Mediamen, including an HBO crew that crossed the Pacific to get a 24/7 glimpse of the Pinoy icon, had gathered at the parking lot outside the stadium as early as 6 a.m.
Pacquiao spent 20 minutes around the rubber-surfaced track with his sparring partner Urbano Antillon, the upcoming Rodolfo Sumabong of Cebu and “Pacman,” the three-year-old Jack Russell Terrier.
Pacquiao had to be restrained by his assistant trainer Buboy Fernandez from running another lap because chief trainer Freddie Roach, who was not around, had wanted no more than 20 minutes.
“That’s the problem with Manny. Once he breaks that sweat, he just won’t stop. He’s like that little thing that you turn on and it gets going and going and going – very difficult to stop him,” said Ariza.
Pacquiao then did his abdominal exercises as he lay on a mat and was shielded from heat of the sun by a towel held across by seconds, ex-world champ Dodie Boy Peñalosa and Jojo Sta. Terera.
He declared himself fit and ready for battle.
“So far, so good. I’m happy with my training,” said Pacquiao, even if he had to leave Baguio City in a huff before midnight of Sunday for fear that a new super typhoon might catch up with them up there.
“I’m faster that Cotto so I will use that speed the proper way,” said the 30-year-old champ, who had a brief rest back in his hotel before proceeding to the Gerry Peñalosa Gym in Mandaluyong for sparring.
Pacquiao is in his final days of workout in the Philippines, and by Saturday he would have done five weeks, and in the evening will push for Los Angeles where he’ll train two more weeks at the Wild Card Gym.
Ariza said the change of training venue will not stop Pacquiao from working hard.
“It doesn’t make a lot of difference to him. No difference. We don’t skip a beat here. Training is training. A few more days here then we take off and pick up from where we left off in LA,” he said.
In Baguio, the rains kept Pacquiao out of the road for a couple of days, but Ariza said that in a way it worked to their favor.
“Personally it did us some good because he got to rest a little bit more. On the day he skipped the run he sparred much better. Yesterday he did 15 rounds (with the mitts) and he wasn’t even breathing.
“He’s down to 149 but I want him to load up (with protein shakes) because I want him at around 151 by the time we leave for LA. He’s in the best shape I’ve ever seen him,” Ariza said.
share on: facebook

Pacman wins over Cotto

Pacquiao will soften Cotto in 3rd round just like what he did to Ricky.
Although Cotto is Cotto,Ricky is Ricky.With the hand-speed the agility of Pacman, Cotto will just like Oscar Dela Hoya, standing and waiting the punch of pacman.Eventhough Pacman is a road show with the good descipline and determination pacman can adjust easily.

Cotto should train ahead for he knows what is the capability of his opponents.Pacman fights and defeated mexican legends,and now to obtain his 7 wins to be in the history of boxing he will surely knock-out Cotto.

It's a battle between boxing history of who can stop pacquaio or will the 7 straight wins will swept in boxing history.

But you cannot determine fate, who knows cotto could deliver a good punch that will knockout pacman.

since im a pacman fans, that 1% could not happen...


share on: facebook

Pacquiao doesn't need Cotto or his belt

Truth be told Manny Pacquiao does not need Miguel Cotto, nor his belt. Just based on both fighters' recent history, it should be Cotto crawling on all fours wanting to fight Pacquiao to revive his slumping career.

I don't know whether Cotto is posturing or is simply stubborn when he said he wouldn't put up his WBO welterweight belt against Pacquiao even if he had to vacate it. Fighting words from the gallant Puerto Rican, but why would Pacquiao care?

If that's the case then Cotto isn't really interested in the biggest payday and break of his career after all. If I was a Team Pacquiao adviser, I'd simply tell Manny to walk and explore his many other options.

Mosley is willing and waiting in the wings and would even go down to 140 and take 40% of the pot just to dance with Manny. Of course there's still the option of paying Marquez step-aside money as Floyd Mayweather Jr. himself suggested and get right down to business with "Money May". Or he can stay in his division and fight the winner of Timothy Bradley and Nate Campbell next week at the Agua Caliente Casino in Palm Springs. Call me T.I. because fact of the matter is Manny, "you can have whatever you like". Such are the rewards of being the best and most popular boxer in the planet. When Cotto actually locates his heart after Antonio Margarito beat the crap out of him and fighting the last four rounds of his controversial win against Joshua Clottey on skates, then he can start acting like a diva.

Really? He will vacate his title just so Pacquiao wouldn't be able to get a shot at it? That's simply disrespectful in my book. You wouldn't even give a much smaller person a shot at a belt he very well deserves if he beats you just because of two almost meaningless pounds? Even when it means you are to get the biggest payday of your career? Really?

Pacquiao did not invent title fights at a catch weight, in fact great boxers like Sugar Ray Leonard have done it before him in the past. The welterweight limit is from 141-147 pounds, the 147 is just the maximum weight they can come in at the weigh-ins. Realistically, Pacquiao is really that small compared to Cotto so the two pounds only makes it sensible. Just a year ago, even Bob Arum himself said imagining Pacquiao in the ring with Cotto was ludicrous and he simply could not see it happening. That was then, this is now. And now all of a sudden it's ridiculous for Pacquiao to ask for a title-fight for asking Cotto to come down 2 pounds?

Let's put things in proper perspective. Pacquiao does not need Cotto right now. Actually, Cotto is fortunate that he is getting all this attention and publicity after his ho-hum victories and devastating loss to Margarito. A lot of people even consider him damaged goods and actually lost to Clottey. That's not to say I agree with that, I personally feel Cotto is still one of the toughest fights for Pacquiao out there but it doesn't mean it's the best fight for him necessarily especially if it would be a beltless fight and if Cotto would go out of his way just to not make it a title-fight. Pacquiao can fight Mosley who is a better sell for American veiwers and Pay-Per-View buyers anyway. You also finally get to see Pacquiao fight an African-American boxer, one of the best at that, as some people have been clamoring for. I know I'm starting to sound like a broken record but Pacquiao got options... Pacquiao got options....Pac-paca-pac-pa-pac-pac got chiki-chiki op-tions... Pacquiao got op-o-o-options. Broken record, scratch, scribble, dice and transform it, whatever it takes to send the message. Got it? Good. (By the way shout out to my boy DJ QBert, one of the best skratch DJs to have ever lived)

Perhaps somebody whispered something behind Cotto's ear for him to be confident of whatever happens at the moment. It's almost as if he is willing to just finish up his contract with Top Rank against whoever and jump ship to Golden Boy where promised greener pastures await. It makes sense. De la Hoya could have very well guaranteed Cotto a shot at Mayweather or a rematch with Mosley with some serious dough in tow. Nobody really believes that all Cotto and De la Hoya did was a round of golf a couple of weeks ago.

That's besides the point however. Last time I checked, Pacquiao hasn't signed any papers to fight Cotto yet. Cotto is a good opponent but there are better options for Pacquiao out there if Cotto insists on playing hard-to-get. He can go for Mosley's belts at 143 if he wants to rather than negotiate with a fighter people consider as "damaged goods".
share on: facebook

Manny Pacquiao: Destined to be Champion of All Champions

Now that the WBO welterweight title of Miguel Cotto will be put on the line on his battle on November 14 against Manny Pacquiao, the Pacman can now focus on building his legacy as the Champion of all champions " the opportunity to become the first ever pugilist to win 7 titles in 7 different divisions.

Although the fight contract has not been signed yet by either fighter, Top Rank`s big honcho Bob Arum already confirmed that the fight would be contested at 145 lbs. and yes, it is now a title bout.
Pacquiao must now keep his eyes on the prize as this will surely seal his legacy as the world`s most elite prizefighter. Cotto is a tough foe to defeat but with proper training and uninterrupted preparation, the Pacman can definitely make history once again on November 14 by handing the Boricua Bomber his second loss in his professional career.
A win by Pacquiao will catapult him to pound for pound supremacy even over his heir-apparent, the former pound for pound Lord Floyd Mayweather, Jr., who is scheduled to do battle with Juan Manuel Marquez on September 19 in a non-title welterweight match. Providing that Pacquiao and Mayweather come out victorious on their separate scheduled matches against rugged and talented oppositions in Cotto and Marquez, respectively, a clash between these two pound for pound warriors looms in the horizon. By then, the boxing world will surely find out who is the real King of boxing " the authentic cash cow of the undying sport of the Sweet Science.

share on: facebook

This is the question that is being asked of Michael Phelps and other world-class swimmers today. Precisely how much of their speed in the water is due to their own innate abilities as opposed to the more streamlined swimsuits currently in vogue is a question that vexes the swimming community. After all, Phelps seemed once invincible in his Speedo LZR, last year’s hot swim racing fashion. But all of a sudden German swimmer Paul Biedermann, in his new, high-tech Arena X-Glide suit, has left Phelps behind. The ethics of these uber suits is currently the only topic of debate in the swimming world. But, unlike the suits, the debate is not brand new. In fact, in 1926 when Trudy Ederle became the first woman, and only sixth person, to swim the English Channel, beating the existing men’s record by nearly two hours, her success was due, in part, to her innovative swimsuit. The first swimmers wore nothing, and this was more or less the norm until the 19th century when English men’s swimming clubs began holding competitions that sometimes included female spectators. As a result, to protect the virtue of these spectators, male swimmers wore one-piece singlets, usually made of wool or flannel, and later of silk. These “unitards’’ originally stretched from the ankle to the wrist but evolved over time to expose most of the legs and arms. It was different for women. Repressive morality forced women to wear cumbersome swimming skirts or gowns with bloomers and stockings that covered nearly the entire body and made the act of swimming nearly impossible. Not until the Women’s Swimming Association was created in New York in 1917 and began sponsoring women’s swimming meets did it become acceptable for female athletes to abandon these skirts and wear less-restrictive unitards that began above the knee and left the arms completely exposed. Ederle wore such a suit in 1925 when she first tried and failed to swim the English Channel. During the journey, which ended halfway across due to both bad weather and the ill effects of something she had consumed, her suit had proven to be problematic. The woolen singlet had caused significant chafing around her arms and over the course of her swim had lost its shape. The neckline had gaped open like the mouth of a basking shark, creating considerable drag as she swam through the water using the American crawl. As she trained in France for a second attempt during the summer of 1926, Ederle and her sister Meg began experimenting with Ederle’s suit. This time it was made of silk, which helped with the chafing, but during training Ederle discovered that the scoop neck still slowed her down. So the two took matters into their own hands. They removed a skirt from the original suit and, with additional material Meg bought in Paris, fashioned a two-piece suit consisting of a brassiere that opened and closed in the front, and a bottom, akin to a pair of tight-fitting briefs. The result worked beautifully. The two-piece suit gave her more freedom of movement. The tight-fitting top caused comparatively little drag, did not chafe her skin, and the clasps on the brassiere even allowed Ederle to make adjustments in the event the material stretched. Although they did not realize it, some two decades before Louis Reard and Jacques Heim received credit for inventing the bikini, the Ederle sisters already had. Unfortunately, neither sister realized they had created not only something brand new but something with much commercial potential. They never thought to trademark or patent the design and lost the opportunity to earn millions of dollars. No matter. On Aug. 6, 1926 Ederle entered the English Channel on the French shore and emerged 14 hours and 31 minutes later at Kingsdown Beach in England, the first woman to conquer the Channel, evidence of success for both the suit and the swimmer. Although she may have missed out on a fortune on her swimsuit, she still won something far more important: the right for women everywhere to compete as athletes. Glenn Stout is the author of “Young Woman and the Sea: How Trudy Ederle Conquered the English Channel and Inspired the World,’’ published last week by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

MANILA, Philippines - His fight with Manny Pacquiao is still 11 weeks away and a handful of kinks have yet to be ironed out, but that has not stopped Miguel Cotto from plunging into training mode.
The Puerto Rican WBO welterweight champ started sweating it out on Monday, running at the Freire de Cidra Stadium in his hometown of Caguas, and capped his first practice by working on the heavy bags, according to Examiner.com's Ricardo Lois.
Cotto is scheduled to face Pacquiao on Nov. 14 in Las Vegas in a fight that is not only several months away but also a couple of issues from being formalized. Most of the kinks center on the catch weight, with Cotto saying he will only stake his title only if the match is pegged at 147 pounds.
Promoter Bob Arum announced that the fight would be at a 145 lb catch weight.
Cotto breezed through the initial hurdles set for him by trainer Joe Santiago.
"I feel good to be starting," Cotto told Carlos Gonzalez of Primera Hora. "I am going to take things little by little, working three days a week. I needed to be in the gym again."
Pacquiao, meanwhile, is busy honoring numerous commitments in the country.
Team Pacquiao has already announced an eight-week camp for the Cotto bout. And part of that camp could be spent away from trainer Freddie Roach's Wild Card gym in Hollywood.
Arum has advised Pacquiao, an early 2-1 favorite in betting, to spend the first half of his training outside the United States for tax considerations.
Meanwhile, Roger Mayweather, trainer and uncle of returning former world champion Floyd Mayweather Jr., has been arrested and charged with two felonies by the Las Vegas Police Department.
Roger, who was freed Monday after posting a $13,000 bail, was accused of coercion and battery with strangulation by professional female boxer Melissa St. Vil.
share on: facebook

Fire Up The Grill and Simmer Until Ready

By Mike Burnell: First and foremost this is a fight fans fight. It’s a fight that stimulates our primitive hunger for violence. This may not be the huge fillet mignon that hardcore fight fans crave but it is a juicy rib eye. Anyone who has grilled a day in their life knows that it is almost impossible to grill a ribeye that doesn’t satisfy. This fight will leave us full and anticipating the next meal.

This fight is a case of two fighters going in opposite directions. Both fighters have legions of absolute die hard fans but unfortunately only one side will celebrate the result. Fans of both fighters will be able to hold their heads high at the end of the bout however fans of the Filipino phenom will be salivating like a starving dog in Pavlov’s kennel for the Super fight we all know is on the horizon.
It is certainly a telling sign when Pac, who calls the shots, opts for dangerous Cotto at 145 (only two pounds under the welter limit) instead of a ‘weight drained’ Shane Mosley at 140 who hasn’t been close to that weight in nearly a decade. On the surface it appears to be a much more comfortable weight for the smaller framed overachiever to take on Shane but he opted against it despite the decided advantage. What does he see?
Miguel Cotto has a very impressive record of 34-1 (27). His sole loss to Antonio Margarito is shrouded in doubt as Margarito was discovered with loaded gloves v Mosley. Cotto apologists will give him a pass as it is possible Margo had loaded gloves that night too. Truth be told loaded gloves don’t help a mans beard and Cotto couldn’t substantially hurt him. The freshly tattooed Cotto’s victory over Michael Jennings was meaningless to knowledgeable boxing fans but a great blind antiseptic him and his fans.
Most recently Cotto engaged in a life or death struggle against much avoided Josh Clottey. Enduring a huge wound over his left eye in the early rounds he managed a disputed decision in front of a pro-Cotto crowd. Most objective fans wouldn’t have a problem had the decision gone the other way. Cotto is a very tired 28 years old with wars against Zab Judah, and Shane Mosley while being rattled by Chop Chop Corley and others along the way. The Cotto we saw v Clottey will bring impressive credentials into the ring and he will likely be carried out v Pac.
Manny Pacqiuao is 30 years old and is deservedly recognized as the mythical pound for pound champion of the world. He recently annihilated larger Hatton who had lost only once (to Floyd Mayweather Jr) and dethroned the legendary Kostya Tszyu. Freddy Roach helped Pac turn the corner from being a one armed bomber with good intentions to a two-fisted southpaw killer.
Mayweather will be successful as expected v smaller Marquez via 7th round TKO and Pac defeats legit Welter Cotto at 145 with an accumulation of punishment however the official result will be TKO on cuts. It will set up the mouth watering fight of the decade. The money will be far too large to prevent the fight (they will argue percentages but the fight will happen) for recognition of the best fighter of their era and the largest non-Heavyweight purse in history.
This is not an interesting match between unproven prospects, it is the biggest bout that can be made with todays two biggest stars. It is reminiscent of the first Ali-Frazier bout where both had legitimate claims to the same championship. They chose to settle it in the ring and the rest is history.
While we may hunger for fillet lets enjoy the rib eye that we are being offered. Regardless of the result the grill is hot and ready for the main course…
share on: facebook

Cotto looking for lefty sparmates

Tapping and finding sparring partners who are mirror-images of Manny Pacquiao will be the key to victory for Miguel Cotto when he faces the Filipino icon on November 14 in Las Vegas.
Cotto chief trainer Joe Santiago told the newspaper El Nuevo Dia that they are on the lookout for southpaw sparring partners who they plan to bring to Tampa, Florida, for the crucial phase of training camp.
“We will try to get left-handed and short boxers with good hand speed (like Pacquiao). This is the key to victory,”
Santiago said as he was presiding over Cotto’s first training session on Monday in Puerto Rico.
Cotto said he felt great after his light training, something that was not the case in the past.
“I feel very well, thanks to God. Better than when I began in previous occasions,” said the 28-year-old Cotto, who will report to the gym three times a week in the next two weeks in time for the arrival of conditioning coach Phil Landman.
While Cotto is already in training mode, Pacquiao appears to be taking it nice and easy and it seems the 30-year-old four-division champion will only get to put on a pair of gloves after the four-city promotional tour being arranged starting on September 10.
Even if Pacquiao is still fulfilling his obligations and not opting to show up at some private gym in Manila, the fighter remains on track in the proposed eight-week training camp that will be supervised by Freddie Roach in a venue to be determined in the next few weeks.
By the time the press tour makes its final stop in Los Angeles on September 14, Pacquiao can still afford to take a day or two off before hooking up with Roach to God knows where.
Being eyed to host Pacquiao’s first half of training camp are the Bahamas, Vancouver, Mexico and even the Philippines.
share on: facebook

First pics: Cotto opens camp!

WBO welterweight champion Miguel Cotto had his first day of training for his ‘Firepower’ super fight against Manny Pacquiao on November 14. Miguel began his training camp in the Abner “Pin” Cotto Boxing Gym in Aguas Buenas. He will be training three days a week to establish a pre-training condition until his physical trainer Phil Landman arrives in Puerto Rico on August 22 to begin full training sessions on Monday, August 24.

share on: facebook

Why Pacquiao Will Destroy Cotto: Fire Up The Grill and Simmer Until Ready

By Mike Burnell: First and foremost this is a fight fans fight. It’s a fight that stimulates our primitive hunger for violence. This may not be the huge fillet mignon that hardcore fight fans crave but it is a juicy rib eye. Anyone who has grilled a day in their life knows that it is almost impossible to grill a ribeye that doesn’t satisfy. This fight will leave us full and anticipating the next meal.
This fight is a case of two fighters going in opposite directions. Both fighters have legions of absolute die hard fans but unfortunately only one side will celebrate the result. Fans of both fighters will be able to hold their heads high at the end of the bout however fans of the Filipino phenom will be salivating like a starving dog in Pavlov’s kennel for the Super fight we all know is on the horizon.

It is certainly a telling sign when Pac, who calls the shots, opts for dangerous Cotto at 145 (only two pounds under the welter limit) instead of a ‘weight drained’ Shane Mosley at 140 who hasn’t been close to that weight in nearly a decade. On the surface it appears to be a much more comfortable weight for the smaller framed overachiever to take on Shane but he opted against it despite the decided advantage. What does he see?

Miguel Cotto has a very impressive record of 34-1 (27). His sole loss to Antonio Margarito is shrouded in doubt as Margarito was discovered with loaded gloves v Mosley. Cotto apologists will give him a pass as it is possible Margo had loaded gloves that night too. Truth be told loaded gloves don’t help a mans beard and Cotto couldn’t substantially hurt him. The freshly tattooed Cotto’s victory over Michael Jennings was meaningless to knowledgeable boxing fans but a great blind antiseptic him and his fans.

Most recently Cotto engaged in a life or death struggle against much avoided Josh Clottey. Enduring a huge wound over his left eye in the early rounds he managed a disputed decision in front of a pro-Cotto crowd. Most objective fans wouldn’t have a problem had the decision gone the other way. Cotto is a very tired 28 years old with wars against Zab Judah, and Shane Mosley while being rattled by Chop Chop Corley and others along the way. The Cotto we saw v Clottey will bring impressive credentials into the ring and he will likely be carried out v Pac.

Manny Pacqiuao is 30 years old and is deservedly recognized as the mythical pound for pound champion of the world. He recently annihilated larger Hatton who had lost only once (to Floyd Mayweather Jr) and dethroned the legendary Kostya Tszyu. Freddy Roach helped Pac turn the corner from being a one armed bomber with good intentions to a two-fisted southpaw killer.

Mayweather will be successful as expected v smaller Marquez via 7th round TKO and Pac defeats legit Welter Cotto at 145 with an accumulation of punishment however the official result will be TKO on cuts. It will set up the mouth watering fight of the decade. The money will be far too large to prevent the fight (they will argue percentages but the fight will happen) for recognition of the best fighter of their era and the largest non-Heavyweight purse in history.

This is not an interesting match between unproven prospects, it is the biggest bout that can be made with todays two biggest stars. It is reminiscent of the first Ali-Frazier bout where both had legitimate claims to the same championship. They chose to settle it in the ring and the rest is history.

While we may hunger for fillet lets enjoy the rib eye that we are being offered. Regardless of the result the grill is hot and ready for the main course…

share on: facebook

Sponge Bob Arum corrects worst career gaffe on Pacquiao

"I am filipino and I need to see Manny Pacquiao fight in Vegas for he is my generation's Flash Elorde, Elvis, The Beatles, King Rameses II, Genghis Khan, maybe even Seabiscuit."--MANNY PACQUIAO'S ARDENT FAN, FRANCIS V, WHO LIVES IN CALIFORNIA AND WHO DREAMS OF ATTENDING PACMAN VS. COTTO.


I can’t remember when savvy Bob Arum so badly misjudged a boxing situation.

This one goes down as the worst gaffe of his legendary career.

“Nobody cares in the US” about the WBO welterweight title being on the line Nov. 14 when Manny Pacquaio fights Miguel Cotto.

Then came the immediate worldwide backlash, including 17, 489 names who joined my protest here at Examiner.com.

Arum was getting ripped all over the place and our Indianapolis based scribe, Dennis Guillermo, chimed in with his thoughts on the matter.

Now, the always flexible, always versatile, promoter has folded up like a $5 umbrella in a windstorm.

Now, according to Arum, the title being on the line and Pacquiao having a chance to make history by being the first fighter to win seven weight division world titles.

Now Arum is schmoozing and not cursing WBO leader Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel.

And, in speaking to Filipino scribe Ronnie Nathanielsz, both Arum and Valcarcel have shifted the onus to champion Cotto.

Folks, there is no way out for the Boricua Bomber. Not when Arum has even gone so far as to publicly proclaim that he will pay the sanctioning fees, $150,000 each, for both fighters.

The only exit for Cotto would be for him to resign the title and you know he’s not going to do that. That would be like an admission that he can’t beat Pacman.

Common sense has prevailed.

I hope Arum, turning 78 in December, has learned something about Pinoys as exemplified by the massive, loyal fan base that Pacquiao enjoys.


Paco Valacacel photo, Notifight.com.They are not docile. They are not chumps who pay their money and demand nothing.

Arum found this out the hard way.

Arum disregarded their feelings and disrespected their amazing support of Manny and of Arum’s Top Rank Promotions.

In four decades, I can’t recall Arum ever misreading something so completely.

His remarks were the height of arrogance.

But, give him credit now.

Arum was wrong, you Pacman fans made that loud and clear immediately, and Arum has taken corrective action.

It will be a snowy July day in steamy Las Vegas before Arum ever blows off the Pinoy fight fans again.

Arum cares because you care.

You threatened to lessen Sponge Bob’s bottom line and he knew it.

But, in this case the why doesn’t matter as much as the what does.

Pacquiao versus Cotto is on and the Puerto Rican will bring that belt into the ring with him.

Then it’s up to Pacquiao to take possession

share on: facebook

Team Pacquiao Made a Weighty Mistake With Cotto - Boxing News

I’m excited about the Manny Pacquiao-Miguel Cotto fight on November 14 and out of all the possible matchups to be made between Pacquiao, Mayweather, and Mosley, this one has the greatest potential to produce the magical fireworks of a legendary prize fight and will be well worth your pay-per-view dollars. 

That being said, Team-Pacquiao made a big mistake and after all the verbal sparring between Arum and Pacquiao’s representatives and the countless meetings that took place across the world’s different time zones, Manny Pacquiao’s advisors failed him and came away with a horrible deal that will negatively impact the final stages of his career. 

Now the financial split has yet to be announced and even though finances are always the priority, a good manager knows that sometimes the logistics surrounding a fight can change a fighter’s career more pervasively than a purse split.

When Sugar Ray Leonard challenged Marvin Hagler in 1987, poor Marvin thought that his team had controlled the negotiations because the Marvelous one received the lion’s share of the purse split, but Leonard’s brain-trust didn’t care about the money and put more emphasis on the fight’s particulars, “Hagler gave us everything we wanted, he was just worried about the money, but we didn’t care about the money, we wanted to win the fight, so we gave him the money and he gave us everything else,” commented Leonard’s career advisor, the astute Mike Trainer. 

And because Team Leonard made some financial concessions to Hagler, he got to decide on the size of the ring and the bout was sanctioned for twelve rounds instead of 15-rounds, which were still being sanctioned at the time, but were in the process of being phased out.

It’s pretty obvious that team Cotto followed a strategy similar to Mike Trainer’s and probably left some money on the table in order to put Miguel In a better position to win the fight.

So instead of haggling over an extra half-million or so, they conceded to Team Pacquiao’s financial terms and held steadfast in their demand that the bout take place at 145 pounds. 

Now I know boxing fans are thinking, “What’s the big deal, it’s just a couple of pounds,” but that’s just not the case. 

Most fans have never had to make weight for a sporting contest and don’t realize how difficult it is for a fighter to make weight.  The whole process is a tolling and debilitating experience and in this instance, those two pounds are going to make a huge difference. 

Cotto had a lot of trouble making the 140 pound limit and was visibly weakened throughout his entire campaign as the WBO 140 pound champion and regularly complained about the physical toll it took on his body and was dropped and almost stopped by Ricardo Torres and almost taken out by the ordinary DeMarcus Corley in front of his hometown fans.

Since moving up to 147 pounds in the fall of 2006 his ability to recuperate and absorb punishment has increased substantially.

Just look how his equilibrium withstood  all those shots from Antonio Margarito, a huge welterweight who may have had cement in his gloves and compare that to how Cotto was shaken up by a couple of punches from the light hitting DeMarcus Corley and it’s obvious that making the junior-welterweight limit weakened Cotto.

It’s because the process of having to lose six to twelve pounds two or three days before a weigh-in is so debilitating. 

Now you may think cutting weight is scientific in its methodology, but unfortunately the process of cutting weight is barbaric and has to do more with basic arithmetic than the scientific method.

Most of the weight is water-weight and fighters know all the little tricks of the weight-loss-trade. 

For instance, fighters know that after a good night’s sleep you generally weigh in one pound less in the morning.  They also know that you can shed two to three pounds of water weight during a hard work out.

Just for those of you who aren’t aware of the rigors of making weight let me go over a scenario that occurs regularly before almost every fight card in the world. 

Let’s say a fighter has to weigh in at 140 pounds on Friday at noon and its Thursday morning and they weigh 146.  They can work out at the gym and have a little bit of water.  144.  Then they can go home, rest, hopefully use the bathroom, sleep, and wake up in the morning. 142 ½. Then Friday before the weigh in they can work out and maybe use the sauna and weigh 140 pounds for less than an hour and make the contracted weight. 

Just try to fathom that experience for a moment and ponder the thought of having to complete two professional level workouts with very little water and hardly any food intake over a twenty-four hour period.

Now that scenario is something closer to what a mid to high level amateur experiences, some of the professionals have to make some insane sacrifices to make weight. Imagine having to go through that experience for three, four, or even five days before a fight. 

The simple fact of the matter is that making weight is tough and besides getting hit, it may be the most difficult thing a fighter has to deal with. 

Guys like Jake LaMotta and James Toney always had more problems with the scales than their opponents.  Henry Ramirez, who had over fifty amateur fights and trains a stable of fighters which includes Chris Arreola, is well aware of the problems fighters encounter at the scales and commented, “Everybody’s body is different and everybody cuts weight differently, but it’s a trying experience. I know a lot of fighters are so dehydrated that they dream about drinking the water when they are in the shower in the days leading up to a fight!”

Now Cotto moved up 147 pound in the fall of 2006 and will probably never fight at 154 pounds, he’s just too short and probably doesn’t have the length necessary to compete at the elite level in the higher weight classes. 

He’s a welterweight plain and simple and now he has to drop two extra pounds to fight the Pac-man. 

Now if Cotto were really struggling to make 147 I would say those two pounds would make a difference and that losing those extra 32 ounces would negatively impact his overall strength, but he makes the welterweight limit relatively easily, I mean he’s not like Felix Trinidad at welterweight or James Toney at Middleweight, and the two pounds shouldn’t have a negative impact on his physical state and that’s a bad thing for Manny Pacquiao.

>145 pounds is only two pounds below the welterweight limit. So those two pounds that were subtracted aren’t going to make much of the difference, but the four pounds had the bout been contracted at 143 pounds would have made huge difference because they would have sufficiently weakened Miguel, just like it did when he was fighting at 140 because even though it would have been three pounds north of the junior-welterweight limit, Cotto has been fighting at welterweight for the past three years and his body has matured and developed.  As a result the drop to 143 pounds in November may have even been more debilitating than making 140 had been because he’s bigger now.

I know people are going to say I’m a Pacquiao hater, that I wrote the article about Pacquiao avoiding black fighters, but I’m not and readily admit that I have underestimated the Philippine juggernaut a couple of times.

First I believed and predicted that De La Hoya was going to destroy him and then even though I picked Manny to win the fight with Rick Hatton, I never envisioned him taking the Hitman out in such a dramatic fashion so early in the bout.

Still this bout is different.  Pacquiao is fighting a prize fighter in his twenties who has clearly established himself as one of the three best welterweights in the world with wins over Shane Mosley, Zab Judah, and Joshua Clottey.  And the boxing fraternity has put too much stock in his wins over De La Hoya and Hatton. 

De La Hoya was completely zapped after eating kangaroo meat and coming in at a weight he hadn’t been at in eleven years and Ricky Hatton just got caught by a fast southpaw. 

People think Pacquiao’s destruction of Hatton validated his win over Oscar, but it may have been an aberration, just a fast southpaw catching an orthodox fight, kind of like how Michael Nunn knocked out Sumbu Kalambay in 1989 in one round.

The thing is Manny Pacquiao is human.  He’s only had three fights above 130 pounds and now he is facing an elite welterweight in his twenties and only received a two pound weight concession.

Oscar De La Hoya made more concessions than Cotto and he was the sport’s pre-Madonna and was in his thirties and still agreed to drop to a weight he hadn’t fought at since Bill Clinton was President. 

Yes Cotto has looked vulnerable the past year with the shady win over Clottey and the loss to Margarito, but those guys are huge welterweights.  Clottey probably walks around at 180 pounds, we saw how he easily outmuscled Zab Judah and Diego Corrales and Margarito is such a big welterweight that he would be a good sized 154 pounder. That’s the point.  Those guys were bigger and stronger than Cotto and were able to back Miguel up and he doesn’t know how to fight going backwards. 

He’s just not adept at doing the boxing thing and looks like a fish out of water when he tries to box and use lateral movement, kind of like how Tommy Morrison looked when fought George Foreman. 
The simple fact of the matter is that Miguel Cotto is one dimensional.  He’s an offensive force and goes through guys like a hot knife through butter.  Besides Tyson, Chavez, and maybe Kelly Pavlik, I can’t recall too many guys that put that kind of pressure on, especially when it becomes apparent that he is the stronger fighter, which occurred when he bulldozed through Carlos Quintana and Alfonso Gomez.I know Manny Pacquiao is way better than those aforementioned fighters but he still is not going to be able to back Cotto up and that’s how you beat Miguel. 
If Pacquiao’s team of advisors had actually been capable managers, and not blow-smoke-up-your ass hanger-ons they would have demanded that Cotto reduced to 143 pounds. Those two extra-pounds would have meant at least an extra-day or two of drying out because the lower you go, the harder it gets to lose the water weight, which would have weakened him just little bit more and slowed him down just a tad bit which would have made him more susceptible to Pacquiao’s counters and power. 
Besides what was Cotto going to do?  Fight a rematch with Margarito or Clottey, two huge welterweights that already gave him hell and don’t bring the kind of recognition and financial compensation that a fight with Pacquiao brings.

Pacquiao’s advisors had all of the leverage and failed to make an agreement that would have leveled the playing field between Miguel and Manny. Even Freddie Roach is aware of the strength disparity between the two and that’s why throughout the early part of the negotiations he was unwavering in his desire for the bout to take place at 143 pounds.
People might think two pounds can’t make a difference, but those seven pounds Cotto added after moving up to welterweight sure did and unfortunately for Manny Pacquiao he’s the one that’s going to have to deal with the impropriety of the contract in November.
Notes:Favorite Quote: Shortly before the rubber-match with Mickey Ward, HBO awarded Gatti with a multi-fight contract and Executive Kerry Davis had this to say about Arturo, “There have been plenty of setbacks, sure, but the one thing that’s been consistent is that he’s always been exciting.  HBO is an entertainment company.  That’s really what we are and Arturo Gatti is pound for pound the most exciting fighter in the sport.” Rest in peace Arturo you are a true warrior in every sense of the word.
Everybody talks about the Ward fights, but the Wilson Rodriguez fight was awesome too as was the first fight with Ivan Robinson, and his fight with Gabe Ruelas.Dan Rafael mentioned a hypothetical bout between Diego Corrales and Arturo Gatti and concluded that he wasn’t sure who would have won it and not to disparage Gatti, but I think in terms of skills, Corrales was in another class and would have beaten him.

After reports surfaced that Miguel Cotto and Oscar De La Hoya bumped into each other on a Golf Course in Puerto Rico, do you think Cotto had to sign an extension of his promotional agreement with Top Tank in order to land the super-bout with Pacquiao?I’m picking David Haye to beat Valuev.  Hey if you can’t dominate Holyfield at his age, you are going to have problems with a young, talented, and motivated challenger.  And I don’t think Haye is going to pull out of this fight because he probably realizes that this maybe the only heavyweight title fight out there that he actually has a chance of winning.

Manny Pacquiao is a legend and has to be considered one of the twenty or twenty-five greatest fighters to ever lace up a pair of gloves.  And if he can beat Cotto, I’ll put him in the top twelve! Seriously how many guys have fought and made their presence felt in so many of the eight traditional weight classes? Not too many.  Brent Matteo Alderson, a graduate of UCLA, has been part of the staff at BoxingScene.com since 2004. Alderson's published work has appeared in publications such as Ring Magazine, KO, World Boxing, Boxing 2008, and Latin Boxing Magazine. Alderson has also been featured on the ESPN Classic television program “Who’s Number One?”
share on: facebook

Does Bob Arum consider Pacquiao fans irrelevant?

Without the WBO belt, Pacquiao-Cotto's Nov. 14 bout will flop.

Mark my words, if Bob Arum insists on staging a beltless Pacquiao-Cotto bout on November 14, the returns will be significantly less than he expects it to be and burn him a lot more than the $150,000 sanctioning fees the WBO demands for him to pay for the bout to have Cotto's title on the line.

See it's not really about the luster of the WBO belt. We all know the value of ABC belts in boxing have depreciated similar to houses all across the US but the fact is, Pacquiao is on the verge of making history.

Besides, haven't we been here before? Wasn't it just a few months ago when Pacquiao's value was being underestimated during discussions about the purse-split between him and Ricky Hatton? At the time Arum was also quoted expressing his disappointment with Pacquiao asking for more than a 50/50 split when he could've very well fought for his ward. We all know what happened in that one and after his destruction of Hatton and how he made the proud Brit look like a bum sparring partner, one has to wonder how Hatton was even paid remotely anywhere close to 50 percent of the pot against Pacquiao. Okay I get it, The Hitman has a huge buying fan base, but the theme is increasingly disturbing as to how Pacquiao's fan base, arguably the most active followers of the sport today, is being taken forgranted once again.

After all, without great fighters that always provide great fights, nobody will buy Pay-Per-Views anyway. Manny Pacquiao by far is the best in the business of doing that right now. Floyd Mayweather Jr. may have suckered people in the past into buying his fights next to more popular dance partners like De la Hoya and Hatton, but a lot of those same fans know better now to stay away from purchasing his fights because of his boring style. There's a reason why nobody is really talking about Mayweather-Marquez right now.

It's a slap on Pacquiao's face and his fans to say that nobody cares that he wins a seventh divisional crown, something nobody else in history has ever done. Perhaps Arum is banking on Pacquiao's newfound non-Filipino related US boxing fanbase to pull thru in terms of buying the fight card because I'm guaranteein you right now, Filipinos from all around the world will not purchase this fight if they continue to belittle their significance in the grand scheme of things.

So nobody cares in the US cares about Pacquiao making history? You can either interpret that as saying America simply wants to see Pacquiao fight Cotto regardless of what's at stake or that Bob Arum considers Pacquiao's fans in the US as "nobodies". Truth be told, all you have to do is have Michael Marley forward you a copy of the 18 thousand names and signatures he received in a span of 24 hours expressing their desire for Pacquiao and Cotto's fight on November 14 to be for all the marbles.

It's not even about weight. Two pounds under 147 is acceptable and is a far-cry from the 143 Pacquiao said to have wanted. Even Floyd Mayweather's trainer Roger Mayweather gave props to Pacquiao saying he has "some major balls" to have the audacity and move up to challenge Cotto. For one, his nephew never even bothered take that challenge and opted to fight the smaller Juan Manuel Maruez instead.

Perhaps Arum’s master plan is percolating as we speak. Maybe this is a publicity stunt as some people say it is, but one thing's for sure, if Arum wants this fight to exceed expectations in terms of PPV sales, he needs to throw Cotto's belt in the mix which isn't such a bad promotional tool either. The people have spoken, and I do not condone ripping these fights off and watching them for free on online stream sites but I know how these things go. Filipinos know how to use their technology and fight back when they are being pinned against the wall and signs are pointing towards a boycott of Pacquiao-Cotto if they don't feel like they will get what they and their idol deserve. The ball is in your court Bob. Make the right move!
share on: facebook