Pacquiao vs Cotto: Is success in the corners?

To quote Vinny Paz, “The guy with cooler tattoos usually wins the fight.” If this is true, then the freshly inked Miguel Cotto certifiably has a leg up on Manny Pacquiao for their November 14th mega-match. While Pac-Man's sparsely painted body may resemble a doodle pad compared to Cotto's canvas of warrior paint there is undeniably one large tattoo painted invisibly on Pacquiao's back--that of a gigantic cash cow or perhaps a cash rooster with the names “Top Rank” and “Nike” etched right below it.

Cotto's pay-per-view draws and huge Puerto Rican fan base are nothing to sneeze at but it is Pacquiao who has securely stamped his foot in history by bulldozing through heavier weight divisions, record pay-per-view revenues, global sponsorships and ultimately knocking out giants that many thought he would lose to.

As a big fight like this draws near it is always interesting to hear exactly what is going on in training camp. As with any sport, what happens in preparations and behind the scenes is a good indicator of what is to come.

While there has been some obvious drama typhooning both inside, and more seriously, outside the first leg of Pacquiao's Philippine-based camp, Freddie Roach maintains that the recent camp controversies have been blown out of proportion by the media. One such mini-drama includes the apparent beat down between Pacquiaos adviser Michael Konz and conditioning coach Alex Ariza which Roach both played down and elaborated on during his monthly podcast interview with Brad Cooney on 8countnews.com. “Nobody gets along that well in camp anyway,” detailed Roach. “Alex slapped Michael once with an open hand and it was no big deal. It's water under the bridge.”

Inside the gym roach says Manny has evolved into an even smarter fighter with the ability to challenge Roach’s strategies with seemingly forensic “what if” type scenarios wherein Pacquiao uses his developed skills to further make adjustments on Roach’s techniques in preparation for every possible Cotto counter. “It’s not teacher - pupil anymore,” Roach explains. “We’re on even terms where he knows the game very, very well. He will do what I say to make me happy but when he makes his own adjustments now I know he is going to use them in the fight.”

So it seems that Pacquiao in a sense has two coaches--himself and Roach—something that in Roach’s eyes Cotto may be missing out on. Roach seems to suggest that Cotto could benefit from the same scenario, while giving himself some serious opportunities to improve his game plan by  not having an experienced coach to guide his training day-by-day. “He telegraphs his punches,” Roach explains. “He can’t throw the left hook without cocking it. He holds it up high. When it's in the high position you know he's going to go with the jab. When it’s in the low position you know he’s going to go with the hook.”

After reviewing a batch of Cotto’s last fights, Roach firmly predicts Pac-Man to prevail with a 1st-round knockout:

“Judah, Corley, Quintana--all had him hurt in the first round. We’re not going to give him any momentum whatsoever. It's going to be a fast-paced fight and he better be ready for this one. He's never fought anyone like Manny Pacquiao. If Manny hurts him like any of those other guys did he will finish him.”

Speaking of finishes, In Freddie's world, the perfect end to Manny's incredible career would be a brisk walk though Miguel Cotto and a final jog down Mayweather Lane by knocking out the unbeatable Floyd Jr. Regardless of the outcome on November 14th, at 29 years old Miguel may also be seeing his final days in the ring as well.