Ken Thompson (Owner of Thompson Boxing Promotions) I like Pacquiao. I just think he’s faster and a lot more agile.
Jim Gray (Showtime Boxing Analyst) I like Pacquiao. I just think he’s the best, he’s pound for pound the best. I know we are all pointing towards Mayweather and Pacquiao so I don’t want to see this upset that [fight] so the choice is with my head and my heart so I’m going with Pacquiao.
Manuel Medina (5-time World Champion, Fought Hamed & Marquez) I think it’s a very tough fight for Pacquiao because he’s going to another division and Cotto has the strength and the determination. The only way Pacquiao can win is if implements the perfect game plan and utilizes boxing skill to outpoint him. I think Cotto is going to win.
Chris Arreola (Heavyweight Contender) I have to go with Pacquiao. Cotto is a great exciting fighter and all that and it has nothing to do with the Margarito fight and people say that took a lot out of him. Pacquiao is the faster fighter and I’m sure he will find a way to win the fight. Nothing against Cotto, I think he is a great fighter, but styles make fights and I think with Pacquiao’s style, he’s going to beat Cotto.
Henry Ramirez (Professional Trainer of Stable which includes Chris Arreola) It’s a tough fight. I think Pacquiao is going to win. He’s the favorite, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Cotto won. I want to see my man Mayweather. .
Cisse Salif (Heavyweight boxer 23-16-2) I think Pacquiao will beat him by decision.
Rico Ramos (Undefeated 122-Pound Prospect 12-0) I like Pacquiao because of his speed and movement. Cotto is Puerto Rican too, but he’s too slow.
Sherman Lambert (Boxing Historian/FightFanNation.com Staff Writer) I like Pacquiao because I think Margarito took something out of Cotto. I think an undefeated Cotto might have been able to take Pacquiao, but he’s not the same guy. It will be interesting to see if he can stop Cotto. If he can overpower Cotto, Mayweather is in for trouble.
James Bone-Crusher Smith (Former WBA Heavyweight Champion, Fought Tyson & Ruddock) I like Pacquiao. He’s busy and he can punch and I like his style.
Yoel Judah (3-Time World Kick-Boxing Champ & Father/Trainer of Zab Judah ) I like Pacquiao. He’s faster and the better all around fighter.
Willie Indio Chunke (Professional Cornerman & Cutman) I believe Cotto will take Pacquiao, he’s one tough dude.
Richard Steele (Promoter & Hall of fame Referee) I like Pacquiao because I think he is busier and I know the biggest fight in history will be Pacquiao and Mayweather so they both have to win.
Alex Ramos (Former Middleweight Contender & New York Amateur Star) Miguel is a strong mother f-cker, but I think if he can get his jab working and then throw combinations when Cotto gets close to keep him off, that Pacquiao will win. Greg Haugen (2-time World Champion, Fought Chavez & Whitaker) I think Pacquiao is too quick for him. He has the speed on him. I think Cotto will have a tough time trying to catch him. It’s going to be tough to beat Paquiao and Floyd will beat Pacquiao because he has the speed. The only way to beat speed is with speed and if you don’t have it, you can’t find it.
Pat Lawlor (Former Middleweight Fringe-Contender, Beat Roberto Duran & Benitez) I like Pacquiao. He’s on a roll. He’s on a roll.
Gabe Ruelas (Former WBC 130-Pound World Champ) I’m going with Pacquiao and not just because he won all those titles. I still think he’s hungry. For champions as I was myself it’s very hard to stay hungry after you reach that goal of becoming world champion. There’s something different in Pacquiao, I see him getting hungrier. That will keep him there as one of the best fighters for a good while because he is still hungry.
Mauricio Herrera (Undefeated 140-pound prospect 13-0) It’s a tough fight. Cotto is real tough and Pacquiao is real fast, but I’m leaning towards Pacquiao now. He’s faster. The way I see Zab Judah and Cotto, I see it playing out like that, but with Pacquiao throwing more punches to win the fight. My money is on Pacquiao.
Israel Vasquez (One of the most exciting fighters in the sport today) In my mind Cotto is the favorite because he has the strength advantage, maybe not the speed of Pacquiao, but he’s a very intelligent fighter and I think he has the advantage at the weight they are fighting at so I’m going with Cotto.
Andy Parsons (FightFanNation.com Staff Writer) When this fight was first announced, I couldn’t really envision either fighter having a clear advantage. Pacquiao was coming off his 2nd round knockout victory over an outgunned Ricky Hatton. Cotto was coming off a courageous win over Joshua Clottey. My first reaction was that is was a pick-em fight. After further thought, I would pick Cotto to prevail. Manny is active with great speed and comes to fight. He will come at Cotto from all angles, and this will definitely give Cotto trouble. However, Cotto is a solid welterweight in the prime of his career. Sure, he may still have some shadow of doubt from the Margarito knockout in the back of his mind. However, Margarito was a huge welterweight and it was an accumulation of punches over 11 rounds that finally brought Cotto down. Manny is just not big enough to do that. Cotto has shown enough ability to box and adjust, just like he did against Mosley. I think Manny is flying a little too high since he beat a weight drained De La Hoya at 147 and an overrated Hatton at 140. Cotto should wear him down with a solid body attack and sheer size. He will get hit -and the fight will be competitive -but I see Cotto coming out on top with a 12 round majority decision.
Paulie Ayala (Former 2-Time World Champ, Fought Tapia, Barrera, & Morales) I think Pacquiao is going to be too fast and Cotto has had a lot of tought fights and I don’t think he recovered from the Margarito fight. And with Clottey, he took another beating. And I think with all the changes in his camp and Pacquiao is getting better every time. So I’m going with Pacquiao in the late rounds. I give Cotto a lot of credit, but I just think Pacquiao is going to be a little too much for him.
Jack Mosley (Father & Trainer of Sugar Shane Mosley) Cotto is strong, he’s not as fast Pacquiao, but he’s strong enough to disrupt Pacquiao’s speed, but I’ m not sure who is going to win, but it’s going to be a good fight.
Andre Dirrell (168 pound Super-Six Tournament Participant & 2004 Olympic Medalist) I love Pacquiao. He’s fast on his feet. One of the fastest guys I have ever seen on his feet and he has fast hands. He’s matured over the years and all that movement, bouncing and getting in and out and knowing how to use your power as well is amazing so I believe he is going to give Cotto another loss.
Casy Ramos (Undefeated Texan Featherweight Prospect 10-0) Pacquaio! Cotto has had a lot taken out of him the last two fights and Pacquiao is at the peak of his career right now and I don’t think anything can stop him.
Hervi Estrada (Southern California Insider, Match-maker, Cornerman, Trainer) It all depends. I think if Pacquiao tries to brawl with Cotto it might be Cotto, but I think if Pacquiao is smart and gets in and out and turns to the side and moves left and right which he is good at doing, I think Pacquiao can pull it off so I think Pacquiao will probably go home with a win.
Joel Diaz (Brother & Trainer of Former World Champion Julio Diaz & Contender Antonio Diaz) Pacquiao ‘s speed is going to make a big difference in this fight, but at the same time lets not forget that Cotto beat Mosley so it’s a very unpredictable fight so anything can happen, but I’m going with Pacquiao.
Alex Camponovo (Former Boxing Hall of Fame Executive & Thompson Boxing General Manager) I like Cotto. I think size is going to be very important and he’s still in his prime even with the tough loss to Margarito. I really think that this is actually the first time that Pacquiao is going to be fighting a true welterweight, a real champion in the welterweight division. Cotto is a relentless guy and might have some problems with Pacquiao’s speed, but I’m going with Cotto.
Leon Lawson (Assistant Trainer of Andre Dirrell & Anthony Dirrell) Pacquiao is in rare form-right now. He’s got the glow. A lot of people don’t know what that means, but all my Last Dragon Fans know, he has the glow right now. He’s a force to be reckoned with, I like Pacquiao.
Shawn Estrada (2008 United States Olympian Undefeated Middleweight 6-0) I think Pacquiao is on a roll. He’s having fights and winning them. He’s been looking good and fast. The only advantage Cotto has is he’s bigger, but bigger isn’t everything. Pacquiao is going to be mentally and physically prepared so I have Pacquiao all the way.
Steve Farhood (Showtime Analyst & Former Editor and Chief of Ring Magazine) I like Pacquiao. I think he’s too quick, too fast. I think Cotto maybe a little bit on the down side and I don’t think Cotto’s size advantage is as big as big as an advantage as Pacquiao’s speed advantage. He’s [Pacquiao] just more today, he’s more now. Unlike most great fighters he seems to be getting better. And if that improvement continues I can’t see him losing to Cotto.
Andre Berto (WBC 147 Pound World Champion) I like Pacquiao. It’s going to be a good fight for Pacquiao, but at the same time, but if he doesn’t come on his game it might be a short night for Pacquiao.
Michael Marley (Boxing Manager/Owner of BoxingConfidential.com) I love Manny in the fight, but I think he is going to have some rough moments. People are used to the fact that he’s been going through guys, he flattened Hatton, that he beat up on Oscar. I think Cotto was devastated mentally by the Margarito thing. Now in his own mind he thinks he never lost, he thinks Margarito cheated in the fight. So much of the game is mental and he’s tough mentally. Bruce Trampler said Pacquiao has too much speed for Cotto. I think Manny will win a decision.
Michael Rosenthal (Editor of Ringtv.com) I think Pacquiao will win by a late knockout. Pacquiao will have more trouble with Cotto than he did with David Diaz, Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton because he’s a legitimate 147-pounder in his prime. However, Pacquiao’s superior ability and speed will wear and cut Cotto down until he can no longer fight.
Brent Matteo Alderson (Editor of FighFanNation.com/Ring Magazine’s Bi-lingual Correspondent) I think Miguel is going to whip on Pacquiao. De La Hoya was dead at the weight and Hatton got caught by a good shot from a southpaw just like Sambu Kalambay got caught by Michael Nunn in 1989. Now don’t get me wrong if they were the same size I would favor the Pac-man, but I don’t how Pacquiao can beat a strong welterweight in his twenties unless Miguel is completely shot. I hope I’m wrong because a Pacquiao-Mayweather fight would be good for the sport, but I’m so confident in a Cotto victory that I’m going to make a significant wager on the fight. I only bet on boxing once every couple years, when I feel like the odds are based on a false perception held by the majority.
David Avila (Veteran Writer: Uppercut Magazine, La Prensa Newspaper, SweetScience.com) I like Pacquiao by Knockout. I think he’s going to knock Cotto out. I think he’s at that point, he’s unbeatable right now.
Armando Muniz (Former Welterweight Contender, Fought Sugar Ray & Jose Napoles) I think Pacquiao will win the fight because he moves forward, forward, forward, and Cotto has the habit of going backwards too much in recent fights. You can’t win a fight going backwards running.
Michael Dokes (Former WBA Heavyweight Champion, fought Bowe, Holyfield & Ruddock) If I have to take a shot at, I’ll take Pacquiao. I’m going with Pacquiao. Lloyd Price (American Musician who Introduced Don King to Ali & the Boxing Buisiness) Pacquiao, he’s a better fighter.
