Prediction: Cotto Loses by KO in 6.
Photos from fightnews.com show Cotto in a public workout looking very skinny. Will the weight loss take away from his energy, or give him speed? I look forward to the round-by-round.
One thing is for certain, beyond a big payday, beating Manny Pacquiao will be the highlight of his career and launch him into even higher value super fight status.
Meanwhile, Manny seems none too worried. He can be seen in the video below making his US introduction as a singer on Jimmy Kimmel live. For those who might expect he’s losing focus and getting distracted (a la Mike Tyson / Buster Douglas), I’m not convinced. The signs are beginning to show – as he’s getting involved in entertainment and political projects. Yet, he’s married, tightly family/team oriented, and does not seem to be Americanized enough yet to get pulled into a more self-damaging lifestyle.
Whatever the outcome, Puerto Rico’s boxers are something to be proud of.
I’ll make my early prediction. Manny wins by KO in the 6th round. A lethargic Cotto won’t be able to match the speed or power of Pacquiao. I would expect him to go down multiple times in the fight, getting caught possibly as early as the 3rd round, and going into survival mode by the 5th.
Despite his knock out of Ricardo Torres in Sept. 2005, Torres really battered him at times. This is the model I expect for this fight, with the exception that Manny is the upper echelon of boxing’s greatest, and will put out a work rate, speed, and power that will topple Cotto early.
The Insider
Cotto’s Greatest Hits:
Paquiao’s Greatest Hits:
