When talks broke down for the millionth time between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather earlier this month, all eyes were on Miguel Cotto, whose contract with Top Rank expired, making him an unrestricted free agent in addition to being the third biggest attraction in boxing. Though the possibility of Cotto fighting Mayweather was just as likely as him fighting Pacquiao, many believed that, due to his previous working relationship with Top Rank, he'd be the frontrunner to land another fight with Manny. Now that the smoke has cleared, we all know that Cotto left Pacquiao in the dust and will face Mayweather on May 5th. His decision gives us a look into what the heck is going on with Pacquiao and his boss, Bob Arum.
After beating Antonio Margarito back in December, Cotto seemed very confident in his chances of exacting revenge against Pacquiao, who conquered him in a lopsided beatdown back in 2009. When the time came for Pacquiao to pick his next opponent, Cotto quickly jumped to the front of the pack as he seemed to reciprocate the idea of a rematch, no doubt viewing him as a low-risk/high-reward opponent. Pacquiao, however, dismissed the notion of fighting at Cotto's proposed 150-pound catchweight, countering him with an offer to return welterweight. Cotto balked at the proposition; he wasn't going to let Pacquiao stack the deck against him this time.
At first glance, the denial of the 150-pound catchweight doesn't seem to make sense considering that Pacquiao was more than happy to fight a shopworn, inactive Antonio Margarito at the same catchweight. Evidently, this time around, the idea appeared to be too much to ask. That raises a few questions. Does Pacquiao and his team perceive Cotto as more of a threat at 150 pounds, perhaps due to his recent victories? Is a catchweight necessary for Pacquiao with some fighters, but not with others?
Maybe Pacquiao was depending on Bob Arum to offer Cotto no way out, like he did back in 2009 when Cotto could go nowhere else to make a big payday. Pacquiao seemingly forgot the crucial element that Cotto was no longer a Top Rank employee, and when Mayweather didn't hesitate to face Cotto as a jr. middleweight, with no catchweight or conditions, it set up the biggest fight of the year between the top two guys that he himself was hoping to fight. Now, Pacquiao will instead have to settle for Timothy Bradley, which won't generate the buzz Mayweather/Cotto will.
Pacquiao/Cotto II probably didn't get the attention it needed from Arum because Arum knew that he couldn't dip into Cotto's pocket as much as he would like now that he's a free agent. Furthermore, Cotto wouldn't be willing to agree to anyone's terms except his own, nor would he have reason to. If not Pacquiao or Mayweather, Cotto had the luxury of making fights with others, and he could be dictating the terms, conditions and purse, all without need of a promoter on his end. Arum has been at odds with Cotto in the past, but in the end, he usually came to an agreement with Cotto because regardless of the outcome, Arum was always going to pocket his share.
The fighter/promoter dynamic is that the promoter works for his fighter, not the opposite. Arum failed to deliver Cotto, and maybe failed intentionally to pursue a Bradley bout, and more importantly, another in-house promotion. Pacquiao should not be content with the fact that his two best paydays are fighting each other and that he's in the position to make considerably less money than he has in his last couple of fights. If he is content, I can't help but wonder why. Maybe it's because Pacquiao has a sense of honor because of all the support Arum has provided him in his political campaign, maybe buying out his contract and representing himself, much like Mayweather and Oscar De La Hoya before him, may cost too much money out of his pocket, or maybe it's just because Pacquiao doesn't seem to care, just as long as he's getting paid.
This is the time for Pacquiao to get on the phone with his adviser and his promoter and ask them, "Why couldn't you make this happen? This is your job!" People get fired for this and fighters leave promoters for this. By not getting the fight he wanted in Cotto, and possibly being forced into two fights he didn't in Bradley and Marquez, there should have been hell to pay from Pacquiao to Arum, but instead, it's all smiles and nods as it always has been and always will be.
Say what you will about Mayweather-Cotto, but it is the best fight in boxing that can be made due to the fact that Mayweather-Pacquiao will never happen, not even in Never Never Land. It will be the best selling fight of 2012 and it all finally happened because Cotto stepped out of Arum's "Matrix" and saw himself as one of boxing's biggest draws, regardless of promoter. Can we say the same about Pacquiao-Bradley?
Danny Howard can be reached for comments or questions at dhoward@fighthype.com, Facebook, or follow him on Twitter (@DBHOWARD126). Also don't miss an episode of FightHype Radio, the baddest two hours of boxing on the planet, starting at 8pm EST.