After yesterday?s press conference in New York for the Miguel Cotto-Ricardo Mayorga clash, I reached out to respected trainer and cut man Miguel Diaz to get his take on the festivities. Diaz has been working for Top Rank for the better part of fifteen years and was in Times Square to see the emotions between the two fighters boil over.
Mayorga, as is his custom, fired various verbal salvos at the Puerto Rican star and to the surprise of some Cotto came back strongly with words of his own. Diaz said he feels that Cotto will not be terribly affected by the Nicaraguan?s trash talk because he has a lot on his plate at the moment.
<--- Slideshow: Images of Miguel Cotto and Ricardo Mayorga press conference
?Salty, very powerful,? Diaz stated when asked of the atmosphere of the press conference. ?Cotto held himself pretty good. Mayorga tried talking when he was talking but Cotto answered him. ?Now it?s my time? he said.?
When thinking of this fight some people are reminded of Mayorga?s wild bout with come backing Felix Trinidad at Madison Square years back. In that contest Mayorga was relatively ineffective outside of landing a few early bombs and was systematically picked apart to the body and head by his Puerto Rican counterpart.
Asked if he sees a similar fight in Cotto-Mayorga, Diaz seemed hesitant to answer.
?I don?t know,? he continued. ?It?s a tough fight. Trinidad was a middleweight. Cotto is just going up to junior middleweight. It could be a great fight. I say 60/40 for Cotto.?
Diaz spent several years assisting Cotto in camp, both in the states and in Puerto Rico, before surprisingly parting ways with him prior to his June 2009 bout with Joshua Clottey. I asked Diaz if he was able to reconnect with Miguel while in New York but he said that there was no contact between the two.
More drama in Puerto Rico between Cotto and Mayorga
The Cotto-Mayorga tour rolled on to Puerto Rico today and there were a few highlights that came from Wednesday?s conference. The trash-talking Mayorga reportedly wasted little time in getting to familiarize himself with the fans in San Juan, taunting them and taking great joy from their reactions.
Mayorga picked up where his verbal assault left off yesterday, again trying to get under Cotto?s skin with disparaging remarks. At one point Mayorga?s promoter Don King had to intervene to make sure that no pre-fight scuffles would ensue. Later the two men would pose with Cotto?s belt and Mayorga attempted to snatch it from his foe before shoving Miguel.
When it was his turn to speak on the dais, Mayorga reminded the crowd in attendance to wear a black shirt the night of the fight so that they would be able to mourn Cotto on that same night. That commented elicited more boos from the passionate followers of Cotto.
Having promoted Trinidad for years during his peak years, King is no stranger to the culture in Puerto Rico and seemed to immerse himself in the atmosphere as only he can.
?Viva Puerto Rico!? the legendary promoter chimed. ?Puerto Rico, the Island in the sun. Without struggle there is no progress. We are Puerto Ricans and we?ll say it proud. If you can?t hear us we?ll say it a little louder.?
Top Rank promoter Bob Arum, who oversees Cotto, noted just how important this fight is for his 30-year old champion. If successful against Mayorga the Caguas fighter could be in line to redeem himself against Antonio Margarito and Manny Pacquiao in the future, the only two men to defeat him thus far. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.?s name was also thrown into the mix as a potential foe down the road.
Cotto?s trainer Emanuel Steward, who began working with him during the lead-up to his June TKO over Yuri Foreman, said with full confidence that his man is on another level and that Miguel was training just as he did when he was younger. Steward conceded just how dangerous Mayorga is in the early rounds but he expects the champion to finish him off with a left hook to the liver.
Cotto and Mayorga will come to a head on March 12th at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Chris Robinson is based out of Las Vegas, Nevada. He can be reached at [email protected]
