Miguel Cotto has not been seen or heard from since his last fight on December 1st, 2012.
After months of silence and seclusion, former world champion boxer Miguel Cotto has finally revealed his future plans. After suffering back-to-back losses against Floyd Mayweather and Austin Trout in 2012, there was speculation that the 32-year-old was ready to hang up his gloves.
This week, that turns out not to be the case as the pride of Puerto Rico recently announced his plans for a comeback. There are also some changes in his corner as well.
Cotto who has held titles in three weight classes, first announced that he has re-signed with Bob Arum’s Top Rank Promotions. His previous two fights were contested under Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions.
The next announcement was that the former No. 2 ranked pound-for-pound fighter will fight again on October 5th. While his opponent has yet to be determined, ESPN is reporting that Cotto could face Delvin Rodriguez on that day.
What has been confirmed is that Cotto will stay in the Super Welterweight/Junior Middleweight division. But the biggest revelation of all is Cotto’s choice for a trainer. The former world champion stated on his Twitter page over the weekend that Freddie Roach will now man his corner.
Yes this is the same Freddie Roach who has trained the likes of Manny Pacquiao, Amir Khan, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Oscar De La Hoya. This will be Cotto’s fourth trainer since his father Miguel Sr. stepped aside in 2008 before his eventual passing in 2010.
After his father’s death, his uncle briefly trained him before they had a falling out. While no one in the family has ever revealed the circumstances surrounding their conflict, neither man has spoken to each other since then.
Under his uncle’s watchful eye before things went sour, Cotto managed a record of 2-1. He defeated Josh Clottey and Michael Jennings but lost to Manny Pacquiao.
After the combination of the falling out and his father’s death, Cotto briefly took time away from the sport. When he got back into the ring against Yuri Foreman in 2010, Cotto had Hall of Fame trainer Emanuel Steward in his corner. He would win his first Junior Middleweight title that night.
Steward would once again be present when he successfully defended his title against Ricardo Mayorga one year later. From there, Cotto would bring Pedro Diaz into the fold. He would gather a record of 1-2 under Diaz’s leadership.
After getting his revenge on Antonio Margarito in December of 2011 {ultimately forcing Margarito into retirement}, he wound up losing to Mayweather and Trout afterwards.
Perhaps Freddie Roach can help Cotto rebound his career and become a champion once again. If Cotto should win on October 5th, perhaps rematches with either Mayweather, Trout or Pacquiao could be on tap for 2014.
Or maybe we could see the “dream match” between Cotto and rising superstar Canelo Alvarez. But for now, it seems like Miguel Cotto may have another fight or two left in him.
Follow me on Twitter @GabeSalgado82
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