Im not sure how this went under the radar, but here we go. I've been hearing and reading around, and people are really griping about this one. Why? I have no idea. To me, it spells, "free fight on HBO". Lol. Anyhow, I like this move for Cotto, it's a "fuck you" move for Alvarez. Why?

It just further proves that Canelo probably wont be fighting an able-bodied 154 lbers any time soon. I say this every time, GBP slap this "sweepstakes" label on Canelo when they have some tomato cans lined up in front of him, but when a threat or formidable opponent is named, we have to hear, "Oh, we're bringing him along slowly".

I dont know about you all, but that's a slap to the face of the public, and they're trying to insult our intelligence. I understand the business move of making the fighter as much money as possible while fighting less threatening opposition, but dont moved him through the rank of corpses in route to a megafight, and lie to us. C'mon man.

Again, Canelo should've been fighting Trout, to see whose going to fight Cotto....this shouldn't have happened this way. What if Cotto beats Trout, then what? What is Canelo gonna do to get a Cotto fight, beat Trout? The guy that Miguel just beat? LMAO! STOP! This looks bad on Canelo and his team, because it looks like they were trying to keep him out of harm's way, but the big fish picked a guy that Canelo was SUPPOSED to be fighting, in order to land that big fight.

Seems that we will never know how good this kid really is. A smaller J. Cotto, an old Baldomir, an old Tyner, a small and unworthy M. Hatton, Rhodes...well, Ryan Rhodes...Im lost here, a shot Cintron, and an old "I need money" Mosley. Not a good streak buddy...and you want to fight Mayweather and Cotto?! STOP.

Again, good move for Miguel. It may not make him a ton of money, but it's definitely a "statement fight"...and the statement is, "Canelo is not ready for able-bodied Jr. Middleweights, so I'll fight all of them, and leave him begging for a fight with me".

Real talk, how the hell is Alvarez not fighting Trout? All the legit guys in his div and Lopez gets the bout?!

Cotto, doing what a champ (well former champ) does, take on the best available opposition. Plus he knows he needs a belt prior to entering any negotiations regarding Alvarez as a means to help remain parity on the purse. All makes sense, who's griping about this fight? Like, where's the rationale there? Only gripe is that its Cotto not Alvarez, but that's a knock on GBP/Canelo, not Cotto or Trout.

Good fight, boxing needs more of it imo...

I have to admit, I didn't "get" this one. Cotto resurrected his career against Margarito. Got a big payday and boosted hhis stock even in a loss against Mayweather. Now, when he's probably at the peak of his marketability, he chooses Trout? Don't get me wrong. It has the potential to be a good fight. I just don't get how it makes much business sense. This is the one time I'd encourage a guy to cash out on a name, regardless of how good the guy is.

Exactly what I was thinking...why in the hell does Cotto have to step and fight Trout, when Canelo and the other guys in the division are supposed to be knocking each other silly, to get a shot at Cotto. For Miguel, this is one of those, "Let a real man take care of it, since the young cub cant".

This REALLY makes ALvarez look a bit shitty, and also validates the point that he is content with taking soft touches, and will try his best to weasel his way into a big fight. Something that I give Khan full credit for...taking on ALL comers, even though he was the money man in the division, and really didn't have to.


I agree to an extent. Sometimes, when you're in one of these situations where Canelo chose to "mildew" rather than BBQ, you have to take a bit of a hit and make a statement. Hopefully Miguel makes a decent statement in this fight. Hell, if he fights the same way he fought Floyd with all of that pressure, then its possible.

Trout isn't a bum, but dude just has those lull rounds during fights, more than he should be having. It makes perfect business sense, because Cotto is the bigger name in the division, and he's basically cornering Alvarez into fighting a harder fight before they cross paths.

Its similar to the way Chavez did Sergio...while Sergio was fighting foreign first-timers and crying about a belt, Julio was fighting some meaningful fights that Sergio could've fought (Manfredo, Rubio, and Lee). Hell, DiBella should've made Lee and Macklin fight an eliminator bout to see who was going to fight Sergio, then the winner of that fight could've been in line for Julio. It was done ALL backwards though.

Hopefully Miguel makes this fight worth it...he'd surely have his foot in Canelo's throat if that's the case. Imagine Miguel trying his hand at Lara or Kirkland after this. Dumb business decision in a way, but that's just more pressure and ridicule that Alvarez would have to endure. Hell, if he happens to land another Mayweather fight, then Canelo's worth would be nothing to speak of, especially if ends up on their undercard again.

Quick answer, Cotto wants to be and remain Champion.

Trout is formidable in every way and this fight makes perfect sense in every way. Its a test for both men and if Cotto can beat Trout (an undefeated champion) it makes a huge statement and I would say a strong foot hold against anyone.

This makes for a good fight folks and Im excited about it. I if Cotto is 100% he beats trout. On the flip side Trout has the tools to beat Cotto, plus he will be motivated.

Im not making excuses but it takes a high volume pressure fighter to beat Cotto..oh.. and Mayweather..lol. I just hope Cotto has put his loss behind him because we (the fans) did as soon as Mayweather was announced the winner.

Keep in mind Cotto's history..everytime he has loss he has followed it with a fight against a Champion... a belt holder.. BIG plus in my book for him by trying to keep his legacy and fight a dangerous undefeated guy that barely has a name..

Good looks

I couldn't keep reading after I heard "meaningful fights" and Manfredo in the same sentence lol

Lol, shut up. They were meaningful to Chavez, in the sense of them being somewhat of a test for his skills that people doubted...or doubt to this day. Those aren't bad names compared to:
1. Dzinziruk - an undefeated foreign fighter with no known opponents, and had just moved up to MW
2. Barker - first fight in the U.S., no meaningful fights, and he really failed to impress against Sergio (except a few moments in the fight)
3. Macklin - only claim to fame was being robbed against Sturm (which I believe Macklin really won that fight by a couple of rounds).

While Chavez on the other hand, fought:
1. Manfredo - former contender star who had shared the ring with Gomez, Mora (twice), Lacy, Bika, Calzaghe, and Chavez Jr.
2. Rubio - former title contender against Pavlik, and had just scored a comeback KO before the Chavez fight
3. Lee - who is a formidable opponent in the MW division.

Im just saying that Sergio could've gotten some type of credit for more than likely KO'ing the same guys that Julio fought and got "fighter points" for. The same goes Canelo, had he stepped his game up a bit. I understand the business side of what GBP is doing with him, but enough is enough already. If an older figher who's been in many wars (Cotto), is willing to 1-up you and fight guys that you're supposed to sharing the ring with...that says A LOT...and none of its good.

props to cotto for doing the choosing and taking on a young undefeated champion.

i've only seen trout fight once...and while i thought he had skill...i wasn't really impressed. his defense is tight....it's his offense that's lacking. he may shine with a guy like cotto coming at him. i don't believe he has mayweather like skills....but he is slick. not sure he's slick enough to beat cotto. one thing i do know...i'll be watching. cotto has paid his dues and didn't have to take this fight. like someone else mentioned....he could have chosen an easy name...but he wants to prove his greatness. good for us.

Honestly I think zbik was more meaningful.. I mean peter is good but he came off a years layoff and no boxing he was working laying out ice on an ice rink.

i don't know man....the karate kid was painting fences and waxing cars before he entered that all valley tournament. there may have been something to laying out that ice.

I LIke the fact that cotto chose to come back and fight a champion on his own terms. We need more guys to challenge these meaningless belt holders in their divisions. These guys like K9 get a little belt and think they deserve the world before proving much inside the ring.

tbf the mans 39, and none of the top contenders will fight him. hes gotta cash out at sometime

k9 seems to be the weakest link. i don't know why no one has gone after his belt sooner.

high risk/low reward. his brings dick all money really, and he has that KO power that could actually change the course of a fight.

he does appear to be strong...but he's slow as shit and very predictable and he himself can be ktfo'd. sometimes u have to take calculated risks to move up. if ur a slick fighter with some pop...he's a no brainer imo.

hes not hard to beat, corey was schooling him till he got put down.

I agree with the Zbik fight, the only reason why, is because it separated Julio and Sergio...one of them became champ after the fight, and the other didn't! Lol. Nah, it was something going on with Sergio and HBO at the time.

As for Manfredo, he just had a fight in Jan '11, and fought Julio in November of that year. He was relatively busy, having 2 fights in '09 and 3 in '10. They may not have been the most exciting, but he was a bit busy. His longest layoff had to be from his Jan '11 bout until the Chavez bout.


He should take some of the blame for this. Obviously, he doesn't know the game very well. He won that damn IBF belt, and went insane with demands. He failed to realize that a NAME is what gets you big fights not a belt. He "sat out", called guys out, begged, and ended up getting another Spinks fight, which probably did nothing for his pockets.

He kept mentioning how old he was getting, but being old and staying active, beats the heck out of being old, getting older while waiting, and risk having ring rust which is harder to shake off at his age. If he waited all this time, and all he could manage to land was a Spinks rematch, then that says a lot, and not in a good way.

I want the man to have a money fight before he hangs em, but he must understand that he's on the B or C side of things in the division. A Cotto fight wouldn't have been bad for his pockets, but Im sure Miguel's would've taken a hit. This Trout fight ma do the same for Cotto's pockets in a way, but the location (MSG) may do him favors in regards to gate sales. Who knows...

Trout is 39? Wtf has he been doing lol.. idk trout is awkward with power but he did just drop his strongest link in Emmanuel. I think cotto could outbox him and push for a late ko/stoppage

Gotta commend Cotto for taking a fight with another champion. He knows what he's doing, and it's an MSG, a building that's been good to him both in the ring and in terms of his pockets.

I see this fight being more competitive then some fans are giving it credit for but I do see Cotto wearing Trout down to his lack of a consistent offensive game. I've seen trout fight probably 3 or 4 times and his defense is solid, he could benefit from a more well rounded offensive game. I think Trout will have some moments in the earlier \rounds before Cotto begins to take over the fight

i have no problems with this fight

Let me be perfectly clear, this is a GOOD FIGHT. I just don't see how it helps posturing for a superfight in the future with any of the marquee players at 154 or 147. Either way, I'll be tuning in.

Cotto IS the marquee name at 154...and I NEVER want to see this dude weigh anything south of it. Canelo better make an impact before Miguel retires, or else, someone will soon take his spot. I like this boss shit from Cotto!

Trout D12... Cotto has trouble with guys who will box him. See the Clottey and Mayweather fights.

Agreed.

Cheesey's a Trout fan. It's been confirmed a while ago!

Alvarez vs Trout made more sense to me but whatever. I don't know about anyone else but I think this will be easy for Cotto.

If cotto can't hurt this guy it will be tough for him. All trout has to do is avoid the big shots or have a high guard and walk cotto down like clottey or marg.

With Floyd being as slick as he is, and Miguel being able to land some meaningful punches (more than he was given credit for), then Trout will have a fight on his hands. Cotto was able to clinch, move, and pretty much bully a bigger Margarito, then months later, maintain a steady and effective pace against arguably one of the slickest fighters of this generation...then he may have prepped himself good for this fight.

I have no doubt ( ) that Trout could win this one as well. Also understand that Trout has the tendency to makes fights boring, so Miguel best try his hardest to look cool, calm, collected, and ready to serve up an oscar-nominating asswhoopin'.

i just don't see cotto winning this one. trout is huge for 154 and has very good power, he is not a belt holder for nothing. Cotto's punch resistance isn't good, especially in the latter rounds. I expect him to look good in the beginning and get stopped late. I love cotto but the margarito fight took too much out of him.

No doubt!

I understand what you're saying, but for me, Clottey did box in the Cotto bout. That's why I was so disappointed when he pulled that lame shit against Pacquaio. Until he disgraced himself against Pacquiao, Joshua Clottey was viewed by many (myself included) as a possible heir to Ike Quartey.

Man I don't know what some of y'all see in Trout, making him seem like he's somethin special. Slow, doesn't set up combinations, wide shots... Has a good jab, okay footwork and defense. His guard is open for a jab, but he does know how to counter it. He's a pure boxer, doesn't clinch as far as I can tell. I wonder how he deals with pressure, because Cotto can establish his jab and set up combinations on you, and can bully you. Given Trout's style its almost asking can he give a Mayweather type of performance? Easily doubtable. Cotto still looks pretty strong, unless the Mayweather fight really took something out of him.

You can't compare the Margarito fight because Margarito and Trout are nothing alike. I think Clottey is better than Trout, and they're also not the same fighters. I'm all for Trout proving me wrong as a rising star, but I got Cotto on this.

You're right, I should've been more specific. I threw Margarito's name in there, in terms of his size and the pressure he brings in fights, not necessarily his skills.

I think that Trout's a top boxer, but you're right let's see what happens against Cotto. Re. Clottey, even though he's my countryman, I'd pick Trout if they ever fought.

I agree. I think Clottey put it on him and took his foot off the gas. I still think he won that fight though. Cotto hasn't faired too well vs boxers in recent history.

outside of boxers named floyd...the only other boxer i ever saw him have problems with was corley and i thought he solved that puzzle before the premature stoppage.

That stoppage was FISHY... Corley also looked Fishy refusing to go for the kill after having Cotto out on his feet...

if by FISHY u mean SLIPPERY....and by SLIPPERY u mean hard to hit. i agree. cotto was hard to hit after corley staggered him. great survival instincts. u can't teach that. corley has never really been the type of guy to go for the kill. he's more of a out slick u/out point u type of fighter.

Fishy was Corley sticking his tongue out and joking with people in the crowd for damned near ten seconds after having Cotto out..