For a fighter, better yet, a man who is cut from the type of cloth that Miguel Cotto is made of, nights like this Saturday night and what they represent usually make the best of what a man can do skill wise. As a result, those skills come into the light for everyone else to witness. At this point, everyone is already aware of what the questions are that surround the Puerto Rican superstar. They are also aware that he has a new trainer in the legendary Emanuel Steward by his side so that small adjustments can be made after brutal losses. If it isn?t broken, don?t fix it. But in the case of Cotto, something was broken, maybe a few things at once. Now its time for him to fix them; Steward by his side was remedy one.
If anyone of you out there has taken the time to read my stuff over the past year (first off, thanks), you are aware that I am big on a few things that always will have their place in this great sport. One is that styles make fights. Another is, that in order to have any type of offensive success on the elite level- you must have a stinging jab (like Philadelphia Phillie Roy Halladay and his fastball to set up his other sick stuff) in order to set up those sick, thudding power combinations- they must flow behind the stick.
In Cotto?s case, while he was going through turbulent times in his personal life over the course of the last year, it seemed that he was getting away from the things that were essential in his early success. It?s good to hear someone like Emanuel Steward say things that suggest he is getting Cotto back into the good habits and away from the bad ones. Habits like no longer putting his head over his front foot, combination-punching, and cutting off the ring with Cotto?s gliding style of foot work. However, there are two things that have not been touched on.
Granted, watching tape and having a three-structure game plan for the first stage of the fight, the middle rounds, and the end is always beneficial and essential on this level. I guess these other two keys are not being mentioned now; they may wait till the post-fight presser, if they come out victorious. These two keys are the use of the jab in order to get on the inside of your opponent, in order to be able to throw those sick, thudding, energy-sapping combinations, and the use of the back foot in order to get in and out of range.
These were two things that a fighter by the name of Giacobe- or Jake- LaMotta was able to do in underrated fashion throughout his boxing career. Oddly enough, the man was known as ?The Bronx Bull,? due to the fact that he was a native of the gritty New York borough, as well as his charging style of aggressive fighting. LaMotta, who was better known for the unreal punishment that he was able to take throughout the course of his fights, in order to dish out his own sick beatdowns, also understood the importance of a jab as a tool to help control the range of the action inside the ring.
I bring up the back foot, because, while everyone focuses on the front foot and its positioning, it?s the back foot that gets you out of danger (of course, when you move back and to the right or left and not straight back). No current fighter understands this better than Floyd ?Money? Mayweather, who is a boxing savant, with the way he controls the range of the fight. It?s a move similar to a basketball player who glides across the hard wood, while on defense. While you can pivot with the front foot to the side, it?s that back foot that gets you in and out of range completely. This is essential when fighting a taller, bigger man that you have to time.
In the case of LaMotta, he would often use his crushing jabs as a way to slow down his opponent, as he would take steps forward, or to the side, in order to cut off his foe. Once that move was done, if in range, LaMotta would unleash a combination to the body and head of his opponent, who was still in the process of getting over being crushed in the nose with a jab (remember, LaMotta, like Cotto, was a small, compact fighter who was short for his division). If his opponent was able to get over the jab and make a move himself, LaMotta, who was not too smooth on his feet, would have to eat a combination when he fought faster men. He would also move his back foot in order to only eat the first or second punch of the combination, while the rest of the punches would fall short, due to no longer being in range.
For Miguel Cotto (who, unlike LaMotta, can move his head and is much smoother on his feet), he will have to summon that spirit of ?The Bronx Bull? against Yuri Foreman. To his credit, Foreman is a worthy and skilled champion. See, against Manny Pacquiao, Cotto believed that Pacquiao couldn?t handle his power and that he could chop him down over time. One problem, after landing some sick punches, Cotto got away from throwing the jab like he did, in order to set up those bombs in the opening round, remaining stationary, once those punches landed, never moving his back foot. He would unleash bombs and not move his back foot. As a result, it allowed Pacquiao to unload his bombs while still in range with an opponent that couldn?t answer five punches he couldn?t see. It was something Pacquiao couldn?t do with Juan Manuel Marquez as easily, since Marquez uses a jab and range to dictate the pace of a fight.
If you recall the pre-Margarito Cotto and all the tribulations that have come upon him, since that initial loss, control over range with foot movement and a jab was something that he did naturally against Shane Mosley. It?s the reason why he won that fight. Cotto himself understood this in the post-fight presser in the bowels of the Garden when he said, ?It was my jab that was the key to this fight.?
All of this brings me back to this Saturday night. Stage one for Cotto: establish his jab in the early rounds, setting the tempo of the fight. In the process, he will be able to glide in and out of range with his return to being a balanced fighter. A lack of balance usually happens to fighters who have success by out-willing their opponents in major fights that become heated with power exchanges (Ricardo Torres, Zab Judah, Joshua Clottey, etc.). Heck, it happened to Felix Trinidad in the latter stage of his career. That?s why fighters with a good jab and solid foot work (Bernard Hopkins and Winky Wright) were able to expose him. Trinidad also got away from setting up his hook and bombs with his jab.
Trinidad too started to put his head over his front foot, with the belief that no one could stand up to his power. This may have been the case, but, like Foreman, those aforementioned conquerors of Trinidad where able to hit, control the range and pace, and open up with strong punches on an off-balanced fighter looking for the big shots. This is part of Foreman?s allure; he is able to make you come to a belief that he is not strong, due to his knockout percentage. Don?t let that percentage fool you. Foreman may not be the faster fighter; he may not even be the stronger man, in terms of force, but he is, in fact, the bigger man. With his style, in comparison to that of what we already know about Cotto, it could be disastrous for Cotto to stay in range after landing some combinations, especially during the early stages of the fight.
Foreman can counter and throw straight punches, which is how Torres was able to buzz Cotto, since he would throw those crisp straight punches in between Cotto?s bombs. Plus, Foreman will not stray from trying to hold Cotto, if he finds himself in a situation that he is not in control over.
LaMotta used to be great at making things uncomfortable for his opponents. In the second stage of the fight, the middle rounds, if you have been getting popped with a stinging jab and have been roughed up on the inside, things tend to get really hot inside the ring and under those lights. You begin to wear down against a fighter who is so aggressive, yet is still able to control and dictate exchanges. All this while rendering your hit-and-not-get-hit style ineffective. Why is this? Well, it?s elementary at this point; I can?t land quick straight combinations if I taste a jab all night. Every time I try and unload several punches, the aggressive fighter I want to hit is nowhere to be found. Plus, he applies relentless pressure by cutting off the ring and not allowing me to use the usual avenues of escape that I can against fighters that just follow me (*cough-Chris Arreola-cough*).
Insert stage three. During the later rounds is when you begin to attempt to land the big bombs upstairs on your taller opponent, whom you can now close the range on much easier, due to the exhaustion that you have forced upon him. Those seconds turn into minutes on a guy that has been touched all night long. Those minutes turn into hours after you?ve been hit with that stinging jab that locks up your spine. Stage four: good night, Nurse.
On Saturday night, it will be interesting to see if Miguel Cotto is able to use this situation to revive a career that has had its own stages of success. Cotto has now arrived at a place in his career where he makes his decisions based off of what is best, from a business sense. Believe it or not, decisions, like in any business, are made for the most financial gain. It?s also good to hear that Steward believes his new charge has become refocused with boxing and is no longer just going through the motions of training, with less emphasis on making money.
Before the Clottey and Pacquiao fights, we heard several remarks about Cotto not fighting past the age of 30 and that, when he does retire, unlike other fighters, he was going to burn his gloves. It seems the emergence of Steward in his camp and this position of putting a bull?s back against a wall is truly making him have to deal with a career that may be defined by questions.
Just like LaMotta used to deal with all types of adversity, during the course of his own career, he let his fists do the talking. It?s hard to argue with someone who just knocked you out or beat you up all night long. So for Cotto, he is well aware that he needs to spear all of those questions and negatives with his own set of horns, his gloves.
Questions or comments can be directed to Luis at [email protected]
