If you are going to be involved in the sport of boxing in any capacity you can expect to have plenty of curveballs thrown your way. With so many people wanting to get a piece of the pie and so many ‘executive’ decisions being made by a variety of people, you just never know what to expect in this sport and have to be prepared to roll with the punches. If you ask Francisco ‘El Gato’ Figueroa about his recent dismissal from Camp Cotto he’ll be the first to tell you that he still has know idea why he was sent packing home.
Sporting a 20-3 record with 13 knockouts, Figueroa’s services as a sparring partner have been in healthy demand over the years. Figueroa is currently gearing up for a November 4th crossroads bout with once beaten Rashad Holloway in North Carolina and thought his work with Cotto would serve him well for the upcoming contest. Now Figueroa is out of Cotto’s camp altogether and left a bit baffled as to how to proceedings unfolded the way they did.
Trying to shed a little light into his time with Cotto, Figueroa recently opened up about how he linked up with Cotto’s team, what it is like training alongside the always laid back Cotto, and his thoughts on the Puerto Rican’s chances against Manny Pacquiao this coming November 14th. In his own words, this is what ‘Gato’ had to say…
Linking up with Team Cotto… “I sparred Cotto before his fight with Zab Judah so I’ve already worked with him. When I saw that he had a fight with Pacquiao and I tried reaching out to him. I couldn’t seem to get a hold of his team but low and behold I found one of his team members on Twitter and I hollered at him. I suggested that I would be a good sparring partner for Miguel. I couldn’t go right away because I was in Rome, Italy but I got a hold of them when I was back in town and they asked me when I could come to camp.”
Leaving early… “I went out there earlier this month. I was there for one week and I felt I was doing a good job. I didn’t hear any complaints or get a negative vibe from anyone. If anything I felt I was giving him good work. I remember sparring the day that Bob Arum was there and I felt good on the way home. I went running later because I had a fight of my own to get ready for. I came home and they gave me a call and said they wanted me to go home the next day. I asked them why and they said the didn’t know but sure enough I was out the door.”
A different mentality… “I was paid to spar but you have to understand that I don’t have the same mentality of a sparring partner. When these guys ask you to spar they might expect you to just lay down but I take sparring very seriously. Of course I have no problem helping somebody get ready. I do very well in what I do. When I get called for a southpaw sparring partners I try to emulate as much as possible the opponent my partner will be fighting. I felt I was mimicking Manny Pacquiao pretty well to be honest. I’ve sparred with Shane Mosley, Cotto in the past, Ricky Hatton before his fight with Collazo, and Andre Berto recently. I always do very well because I take this sport very seriously so I really have no idea why I was sent home early.”
No hard feelings… “I really haven’t gotten close with Miguel Cotto during my camps with him. I just go there to spar and that’s what I focus on. I do notice that he is a very quiet guy, just like you see on the videos, and he keeps to himself. Cotto is who he is and I don’t think he cares too much about his image to other people. I don’t know what to think about his fight with Pacquiao but at this point all I can do is wish him luck. There’s no hard feeling from my end.”
