The father/manager of former IBO light welterweight champion Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton, Ray Hatton, has praised pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao for “a cracking fight” in which he stopped WBO welterweight champion Miguel Cotto in 55 seconds of the final round at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas last Saturday.

In an overseas telephone conversation with BoxingScene.com, insidesports.ph, Standard Today and Viva Sports, Hatton said Pacquiao put on “a tremendous performance and he (Pacquiao) looked so big on the scales, even bigger than Cotto.”

Hatton said he felt that Cotto “took more than what he needed to about eight rounds onwards” even as he commended Pacquiao who, he observed, “at times took his foot off the pedal (eased off) which was good job he did.”

At the same time Hatton said Cotto was “very, very brave and took punches with about three rounds left that I thought he didn’t have to although he didn’t want to quit.” He said such decisions “could be punishing a little bit later and could be the difference between how long his career lasts.”

Pacquiao administered a brutal second round knockout on Hatton when they clashed at the MGM Grand last May 6.

Hatton disclosed that following that crushing defeat his son Ricky would make a decision on whether to return to the ring sometime in January after an extended holiday and that should he return the opponent may well be Juan Manuel Marquez, the reigning WBA/WBO lightweight champion who dropped a lopsided points decision to Floyd Mayweather Jr last October.

Hatton said “that’s the fight they want him to have and I know for a fact that if Ricky comes back you have to come up against an opponent who is in the top three or four in the pound-for-pound list. I wouldn’t think he’ll come back to just fight and knock somebody out.” He said Ricky Hatton “is just like Manny (Pacquiao) who wouldn’t do that either. If he (Ricky) does fight again it will be a really credible opponent.” Hatton Promotions chief executive Gareth Williams had earlier told Gavin Glicksman of The Sun that “if Ricky does carry on it would be an ideal fight for him to take on Marquez. He is an elite fighter, just like Ricky, who will want to challenge the best.”

SOURCE: http://www.boxingscene.com/index.php?m=show&id=23562

The 145-pound weight limit doesn’t seem to have affected either Miguel Cotto or Manny Pacquiao for tomorrow night’s mega fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Cotto came in at 145 on the nose, and Pacquiao weighed in one pound under the limit at 144. It’s interesting from one angle, which is that Manny Pacquiao came in at 142 when he fought Oscar de la Hoya at a full welterweight limit last December. So this is the heaviest Manny has ever been on the scales.

We’ll have more tonight and tomorrow, before we go live at 9pm ET on Saturday night for live coverage, scoring and analysis of the entire HBO PPV card.

The atmosphere for the weigh-in was incredible on the webcast, and every boxing writer that is there live in Vegas said the same, whether on Twitter or whatever. The crowd tomorrow is going to be totally mad.

Jesus Soto Karass came in at 148 pounds initially, then stripped down and weighed in at 147.5 for his welterweight undercard bout with Alfonso Gomez. JSK has to lose a half-pound, which shouldn’t be any major issue. Gomez came in at 145 1/2.

Daniel Santos and Yuri Foreman both weighed in at 154 pounds for their WBA junior middleweight title fight, and Troy Rowland and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. are fighting at middleweight. Rowland weighed 159, Chavez 160. Hat tip to Ramon Aranda of 411mania.com for the weights on the Chavez-Rowland fight, as ESPN cut their webcast just before those two hit the scales.

SOURCE: http://www.badlefthook.com/2009/11/13/1156385/weights-in-miguel-cotto-at-145

Former two time heavyweight champion George Foreman is picking World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Miguel Cotto to beat Manny Pacquiao this Saturday night at the MGM Grand, in Las Vegas, Nevada, according to Sportinglife. Foreman says “I think there would have been a good opportunity for Pacquiao to win if he faced Cotto before he fought Clottey, but now Cotto is thinking defense,” Foreman said.

What Foreman says is true. Cotto is much more defensively minded now since the fight with Clottey and won’t be easily hit by Pacquiao on Saturday night. Foreman has a good eye for boxing talent and obviously can see how Cotto has adapted since the loss to Mexican warrior Antonio Margarito last year. Foreman says “I think Cotto is going to pull out a decision, and now because of the terrible beating he took against Margarito, he knows he can’t get into a knockout drag-out brawl. He’s going to be smarter and I think Cotto in a 12 round decision.”

I totally agree with Foreman, but I think Cotto can get involved in a brawl with Pacquiao and still win without too many problems,. He has the bigger power, then tougher chin and is used to being hit by much harder punchers than little Pacquiao. Cotto stood up to Margarito’s punches for nine rounds before getting hurt in the 10th and stopped in the 11th.

Cotto also took Shane Mosley’s fast and powerful shots for 12 rounds and ended up beating him by a 12 round decision. I think Mosley hits harder than Pacquiao and is about as fast as him. Cotto has also stood up to the blazing shots from Zab Judah, and beaten him as well. Judah, when he fought Cotto, was as fast as Pacquiao. So you see, Foreman has it right, Cotto will win. I see it as a knockout, but I’m okay with Cotto beating Pacquiao by a one-sided 12 round decision. If it turns out that way, it will give Cotto more time to give Pacquiao a terrible beating and show to the boxing world who the superior fighter is.

I kind of hope it does last that long, but I can’t see it happening unless Cotto holds back with his power shots and purposely carries Pacquiao in this fight. I know Cotto won’t do that, because he’ll want to take Pacquiao out as fast as he can to prove Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s trainer, wrong. Roach has made the bold prediction that Pacquiao will knock Cotto out in the 1st round. It’s a silly prediction, and I don’t believe a word of it.

I just think that Roach needed to say something that he felt would shock Cotto and what’s more shocking than saying that he’ll be knocked out in the 1st round? Roach should have at least made himself seem more credible by picking the 5th or 6th rounds, because it’s hard to believe him when he’s making a prediction as crazy that.

It’s like saying that the diminutive Ricky Hatton has a better chin than Cotto. Does anyone believe that? If so, tell me in what fight did Cotto get knocked out in the 1st round or even hurt in the first five rounds?

SOURCE: http://www.boxingnews24.com/2009/11/foreman-picks-cotto-to-beat-pacquiao-boxing-news/

Manny Pacquiao made his grand arrival at the MGM Grand on Tuesday, marking the first time in the world champion’s career the Las Vegas ceremony didn’t take place at Mandalay Bay.

Although Pacquiao is known to be superstitious — he stays in the same hotel room at Mandalay Bay for each of his Las Vegas fights — head trainer Freddie Roach said Tuesday’s change wouldn’t throw off his fighter.

“He is superstitious, but stuff like that he doesn’t care about,” Roach said with a shrug.

“Of course,” he added, “He’ll still be staying in the same room.”

Pacquiao’s fans certainly had no trouble tracking him down, as they packed their way into the hotel’s lobby to catch a final glimpse of the Filipino before his WBO welterweight title fight with Miguel Cotto at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Saturday.

By the time Cotto arrived 90 minutes later, the scene had noticeably died down a bit.

After months of promoting the fight with the reigning pound-for-pound king, however, Cotto says he’s used to Pacquiao’s crowd and that it hasn’t affected his mindset coming into the fight.

“I’ve known since we agreed to do this fight that it’s just going to be me and him in the ring,” Cotto said. “When we get in there, no one can help Manny. No one can hand him something to hit me with.

“I expected it to be like this. Everything Manny has, he has earned.”

Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KO) is seeking a world title in an unprecedented seventh weight class when he takes on Cotto (34-1, 27 KO) Saturday night.

He claimed his first on Dec. 4, 1998, when he defeated Chatchai Sasakul for the WBC flyweight title in his 25th professional fight.

As time progressed and opportunities at world titles in heavier weight classes continued to present themselves, Pacquiao transformed from the 105-pound fighter he started his career as to a legitimate welterweight contender.

A transformation of such magnitude actually, that he says he can barely recognize the kid he once was.

“I watch the tape when I was fighting at 105 pounds and I think, ‘I’m just a kid,’” Pacquiao said. “I think back to moving up to 108, then 112, 115, 118, up to welterweight — I can’t believe it. It’s just happened.”

In addition to world titles, another incentive for Pacquiao to move up in weight (at least initially) may have been a desire to stop cutting weight — a process Pacquiao admits was difficult in the early stages of his career.

“It was a struggle,” he said. “When I captured my first title in the flyweight division, I lost my belt because I didn’t make the weight. I decided after that fight to move up to 122 pounds.”

Cutting down won’t be an issue this week, as Roach said they’re feeding Pacquiao five times per day to keep the weight on.

According to his trainer, Pacquiao weighed 148 pounds Tuesday morning and will weigh-in right at 145 for the Nevada Athletic Commission on Friday.

“When he doesn’t have to miss a meal and can eat before weigh-in, which he’ll do twice, he’s happy,” Roach said. “He’ll weigh 149 to 150 pounds at most on fight night. I don’t like him gaining too much weight before the fight.”

While Pacquiao has shown the ability to maintain his speed no matter how much weight he adds, Roach said he believes this will be the last stop in his move up the weight classes.

“With the right opponent we could move up again,” Roach said. “But for top-level guys, I think this is it.”

The historical implications of Saturday night is enough that Pacquiao’s father, Rosalio, will travel to the U.S. from the Philippines to watch his son box live for the first time.

Pacquiao’s mother, Dionisia, saw her son live for the first time in May when he fought Ricky Hatton in Las Vegas.

“It is the first time my father is coming so I am very excited, he wanted to see this fight,” Pacquiao said. “This is a very important fight for me because I can do it, it’s going to be history in boxing. It’s an honor.”

SOURCE: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/nov/10/manny-pacquiao-miguel-cotto-make-grand-arrivals-mg/