Left field

Pacquiao’s granite chin makes Mayweather fight a tough call

Manny Pacquiao produced another sublime performance in his destruction of Miguel Cotto on Saturday but it was not his fast hands and flashy combinations that grabbed me about his victory, instead it was the Filipino’s granite chin.

We all knew about the attacking ability that Pacquiao had but his ability to walk through the punches of Cotto, a natural welterweight who thought he would have too much power for the man who began at flyweight, was impressive.

Cotto couldn’t keep the 30-year-old southpaw away.

The Puerto Rican looked like a holiday maker desperately, and unsuccessfully, swatting at a fly. The combinations didn’t stop coming from Pacquiao and in truth the fight should have been stopped before the 12th such was the one-sided nature of this lopsided contest.

The poor state of Cotto’s face at the end of the fight said it all.

Pacquiao’s seventh title at an unprecedented seventh weight now leaves him as the sports pound-for-pound king. The Filipino’s promoter Bob Arum, who worked with Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard and Marvin Hagler, described him as the best fighter he had ever seen, however there is one more fight out there for him.

Why boxing world will be urging on the Pacman against Cotto

Miguel Cotto may be loved by his loyal fans in Puerto Rico but the rest of the boxing world will be hoping Manny Pacquiao knocks him out in Saturday’s welterweight title bout to keep the Filipino on course for next year’s super-fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr.

American Mayweather did his bit by coming out of retirement and oozing class against Juan Manuel Marquez in September and now, as he rests up and has so far avoided the temptation to fight Shane Mosley, we can expect Mayweather-Pacquiao negotiations to begin soon – providing the Pac Man wins on Saturday.

Pacquiao’s legion of fans are confident he will beat Cotto, the bookmakers are confident and his revered trainer Freddy Roach approved the fight meaning he must be confident, but there is a nagging doubt that all won’t go to plan and that is because Cotto is a classy fighter.

His only defeat came at the hands of disgraced Mexican Antonio Margarito, who was subsequently banned for fighting with illegal padding in his gloves, and he is a strong, fast and a natural welterweight.

However, since that fight he has had two mediocre contests.

Firstly he knocked out the hopelessly mis-matched Britain Michael Jennings in five rounds before claiming a hard fought split-decision against Ghanaian Josh Clottey in June.

Who’s the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter?

Saturday’s welterweight clash in Las Vegas between undefeated American Floyd Mayweather Jr and Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez could well be the first leg of three to settle the mythical title of the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter.

As things stand, most boxing fans would give that tag to either Mayweather, 39-0 (25 KOs), or Filipino southpaw Manny Pacquiao, 49-3-2 (37 KOs).

However Pacquiao’s next bout will be in November when he challenges Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto for the WBO welterweight title.

Only after that, assuming both Mayweather and Pacquiao have lived up to their respective billing as strong favourites and triumphed, will the argument-ending contest between the American and the Filipino be able to unfold.

Mayweather has repeatedly said the notion of regaining the mythical pound-for-pound tag no longer appeals to him, but the idea that he would spurn the chance to take on Pacquiao seems ludicrous.

In an interview with Reuters, Mayweather played down the Filipino’s most recent fight, a stunning second round knockout of Britain’s Ricky Hatton in May to claim the IBO light-welterweight title.

“Pacquiao went out there and did what he had to do,” said Mayweather, who is returning to the ring on Saturday after a 21-month retirement.