Cotto was already a well-regarded, reigning world champion in the junior welterweight division, but this was the bout that pushed him up to that next level and made him a mainstream boxing star. Cotto battered and dominated the loudmouth Italian-American en route to a comfortable unanimous decision, breaking Malignaggi’s cheek bone in the process.
Miguel Cotto TKO 11 Zab Judah
June 9, 2007 (Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
If the Malignaggi bout made Cotto a star, this thrilling win over Judah brought widespread legitimacy to the Boricua fighter. Defending his WBA welterweight title, Cotto struggled a bit in the early rounds, but gradually wore down the talented former two-division champ and took him out in a dominant eleventh round.
Miguel Cotto UD 12 Shane Mosley
November 10, 2007 (Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)
Brought in as aging cannon fodder, Mosley shocked everyone by putting on a real, live performance against the defending champ, Cotto. In the end, though, it was Cotto who showed the strength and versatility to pull out the close decision.
