Fibroso
04-18-2016, 01:11 PM
Miguel Cotto to wait until fall for next fight
Without a big-name opponent available, Miguel Cotto has scrapped plans for a June 18 return at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Chris Farina/Top Rank
Apr 15, 2016
Dan RafaelESPN Senior Writer
Email
print
comment
Since Miguel Cotto lost the middleweight world title by decision to Canelo Alvarez in their November megafight, Cotto and his promoters at Roc Nation Sports have been planning a June 18 return at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
However, with HBO not interested in paying for a Cotto fight against a second-tier opponent on the network and an HBO PPV card not economically feasible without a quality opponent to face Cotto, the plans have been scrapped.
With the date coming quickly and opponents such as Diego Chaves and James Kirkland among those discussed -- and neither of them being viable as a pay-per-view foe -- Cotto, who likely would fight as low as 150 pounds for the right opponent, will sit tight and look for a major bout in the fall, when a rematch against Alvarez is quite possible.
Perhaps Cotto, Puerto Rico's only four-division titleholder, might look to face Juan Manuel Marquez if the Mexican star decides to fight again.
A fight with Timothy Bradley Jr. would be interesting. Even a fight with welterweight titleholder Kell Brook would be intriguing. But none of those opponents were available for June, so Cotto (40-5, 33 KOs), 35, who is winding down his Hall of Fame career and not hurting for money, is content to wait.
HBO and Roc Nation confirmed there would be no Cotto fight in June and trainer Freddie Roach was also notified.
Roach told ESPN.com that he recently spoke to Bryan Perez, Cotto's right-hand man, who told him about the plans.
"I talked to Bryan and he told me they are going to push Miguel's fight back to the fall," Roach said. "But they want me to come to Puerto Rico and work with him for a couple of weeks, and we're working on the dates now. They don't know the date of the fall fight, but we're going to do a two-week minicamp in Puerto Rico sometime next month just to get him on the right path, work with him on a few things."
Without a big-name opponent available, Miguel Cotto has scrapped plans for a June 18 return at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Chris Farina/Top Rank
Apr 15, 2016
Dan RafaelESPN Senior Writer
comment
Since Miguel Cotto lost the middleweight world title by decision to Canelo Alvarez in their November megafight, Cotto and his promoters at Roc Nation Sports have been planning a June 18 return at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
However, with HBO not interested in paying for a Cotto fight against a second-tier opponent on the network and an HBO PPV card not economically feasible without a quality opponent to face Cotto, the plans have been scrapped.
With the date coming quickly and opponents such as Diego Chaves and James Kirkland among those discussed -- and neither of them being viable as a pay-per-view foe -- Cotto, who likely would fight as low as 150 pounds for the right opponent, will sit tight and look for a major bout in the fall, when a rematch against Alvarez is quite possible.
Perhaps Cotto, Puerto Rico's only four-division titleholder, might look to face Juan Manuel Marquez if the Mexican star decides to fight again.
A fight with Timothy Bradley Jr. would be interesting. Even a fight with welterweight titleholder Kell Brook would be intriguing. But none of those opponents were available for June, so Cotto (40-5, 33 KOs), 35, who is winding down his Hall of Fame career and not hurting for money, is content to wait.
HBO and Roc Nation confirmed there would be no Cotto fight in June and trainer Freddie Roach was also notified.
Roach told ESPN.com that he recently spoke to Bryan Perez, Cotto's right-hand man, who told him about the plans.
"I talked to Bryan and he told me they are going to push Miguel's fight back to the fall," Roach said. "But they want me to come to Puerto Rico and work with him for a couple of weeks, and we're working on the dates now. They don't know the date of the fall fight, but we're going to do a two-week minicamp in Puerto Rico sometime next month just to get him on the right path, work with him on a few things."