Boxing Perspective: Miguel Cotto vs. Michael Jennings

Miguel Cotto started the year 2008 as the man to beat at 147 pounds with a hard fought win over the highly rated Shane Mosley. When Cotto entered the 147 pound weight class, some people criticised that he simply wasnʼt big enough for the welterweights and that the larger fighters would be too much for him to handle.

Cotto answered the critics with a sheer dominant performance over fellow countryman Carlos Quintana. Cotto looked really strong at the weight and with his later performances at 140 pounds, the 147 move was essential for. He showed that night that he was the future of the 147 pound weight class and defended his title four times enroute to the Antonio Margarito clash.

The fight which really appealed to me was the Zab Judah fight in June, 2007; it really did show that Cotto was on track to becoming the best welterweight in the world. With Floyd Mayweather Jr avoiding fighters like Cotto, Paul Williams and Margarito, it was time for the weight class to start really sorting out who was the best.

The p4p number one was interested in the come-forward pressure style of Cotto or Margarito, but I personally think he was put off by the size of Williams above everything else. The only way in which Cotto would ever get a shot at Floyd would be to go after the other elite 147 pound fighters.

In July, 2008, Cotto got a shot against Margarito, who many still believe was the best 147 pound fighter at the time. In my opinion, going into that fight, Margarito was the third best welterweight behind Cotto and Williams, who had beaten Margarito a year prior to this fight.

The status of these elite fighters is what made this fight really what it was. Everything to gain and lose from this very important fight and that is what was shown from start to finish. Cotto canʼt have anything taken away from him in that fight as his game plan was so effective for the first six rounds.

Cotto boxed, applied pressure, countered, and boxed on the front and the back foot. It was a sheer dominant performance for the first six rounds. But when Margarito gets going, as many fighters know, you canʼt push him back at all. His sheer punch volume, combinations and pressure is what lost Cotto the fight, in my opinion.

Cotto couldnʼt simply keep him away and was getting caught with hurtful punches. You could really sense that going into the tenth round, Cotto was hurt and his game plan wasnʼt working anymore. It was a matter of time until the knockout was going to come and it came, and for me being a big Cotto fan, it was tough to watch.

Nothing taken away from Cotto, he put on the best performance of his career and he lost to the better fighter on the night. In my opinion the bout did deserve to be fight of the year because of how entertaining it was and the significance to the weight class it brought.

You could never imagine Floyd Mayweather showing the heart those two fighters put on that night and I will never forget that contest. Margarito might have won the fight, but Cotto cannot be taken out of the elite class of welterweights.

The question that now faces the boxing world is will Miguel Cotto by the same?

My honest answer is yes, I do believe that Cotto can take many positives from the Margarito loss and carry on fighting the best fighters at 147. Margarito is one of the strongest fighters I have seen in the ring, along with a chin made of iron, and any fighter who gets in with him is going to have problems.

Cotto has a mental challenge ahead of him now and if he can get through it, we will see him back this year trying to avenge the Margarito loss in a fight that would again have so much significance. But first, Cotto has a very tough fight ahead of him against a fighter who I believe is being underrated in this bout.

Michael Jennings from Chorley, England is finally getting the break he deserves. Going back to January, 2006, Jennings was the number one contender for the WBO title and was on track for getting the shot he worked really hard for.

He lost a tough 12 round split decision and the British title to Young Mutley which could have gone either way. Unlucky for Mick that it didnʼt go his way, but he knows that wasnʼt his night and since that loss he has won six bouts in a row, looking very impressive in all of them.

The two wins that stood out the most for me were the victories over Takaloo and Ross Minter. The win over Takaloo showed that Jennings is full of class and on my card he won pretty much every single round.

The scorecards had it a lot closer, but every boxing fan who watched that fight must have been impressive with the speed, footwork and flashy combinations compounded with awesome hand speed for Jennings to take a much needed win.

The fight which really appealed to me was the Ross Minter bout, it was a very enjoyable clash and must have been close to winning British fight of the year. Jennings showed that he can handle pressure and also that he does have punching power. The key to that fight was that Mick was simply the better boxer and it showed after he took what Minter threw at him.

After another two good wins under his belt, Jennings finally has got the break which he deserves for all of his effort in the ring. A shot against Miguel Cotto for the vacant WBO welterweight crown at the Madison Square Garden on the 21st February .

This fight for me is going to be very interesting, given that I’ve been following both men for a long time now and I know it’s make or break for both of them. I donʼt believe that the American audience has seen enough of Jennings to see what he is capable of. He puts in 100% effort into every single fight and thatʼs why he has such a good record of 34 wins and 1 loss.

I respect Jennings for taking on Cotto after seeing what the man is capable of since he has been a world champion since 2004. I think this fight will be closer than most people expect and I expect to see a really tight boxing display from Jennings.

If Cotto can counter well and make Jennings feel his power early, I think Cotto has a good chance of stopping him late. Fast boxers do cause Cotto problems as shown in the Paulie Malignaggi fight and against Shane Mosley.

I expect the fight to be close, but Jennings knows that he will very likely not get this opportunity again.

The mindset of Cotto is going to be very important; will that emphatic loss against Margarito effect him? I personally am going to hold my judgment till I see how well Cotto trains.

I can tell the American audience this, Michael Jennings is a very good fighter and heʼs going to show that to the world on the 21st of February. I look forward to this fight and wish good luck to both men as they are both in my top ten favourite fighters.