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 Cotto Sounds the Alarms
By Sean Stowell (May 6, 2004)
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It was shortly after the terrorist attacks in the United States and everybody was on edge. Security at the nation's airports was beefed up, and the slightest misstep caused panic.
And in those turbulent months after September 11, 2001, every time Miguel Cotto would walk through an airport metal detector, the alarms would go off. But while his fists could be considered lethal weapons, there wasn't anything else he was carrying that would make him a threat.
It turns out that a six-inch titanium rod in his right arm triggered those metal detectors - a rod that was inserted into his arm after an August, 2001 car accident. While driving to an early morning workout he fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into a concrete wall. He broke his right arm and shoulder in four different places.
With the accident nearly three years behind him, Cotto realizes how fortunate he was to escape with only a couple broken bones. When he steps into the ring Saturday night against Lovemore N'Dou in the co-featured bout of the Juan Manuel Marquez-Manny Pacquiao card on HBO, he hopes to continue to set off more alarms in the boxing world as he makes his case as one of the best junior welterweights in the world.
"Without a doubt the accident changed me," the married father of three said through interpreter Ricardo Jimenez. "It made me think about a lot of things, especially my career. I could have never had a career, so now I have to take full advantage of that."
Cotto was originally scheduled to take on Juan Valenzuela, a free-swinging, hard-nosed fighter, who had to pull out of the bout a few weeks ago because of eye problems. The late change didn't seem to bother Cotto, even though N'Dou is considered a step up in competition from Valenzuela.
"I know nothing about N'Dou," Cotto said. "I never watch videos of the people I'm fighting. This is going to be a tougher fight, but I'm ready for it."
Born and raised in Caguas, the 23-year-old Cotto represented Puerto Rico in the 2000 Olympics at 139 pounds. He had a solid amateur career, posting a record of 95-23. He was a Puerto Rican national amateur champion in 1997, 98, 99, and 2000, at 132 pounds. Not bad for a kid who first went to the gym to lose weight.
"I was very heavy at 11-years-old," he said. "I started boxing just to lose weight, but I got hooked."
During that amateur career he took on several opponents who are now making names for themselves as professionals. In three fights with Francisco "Panchito" Bojado, Cotto won two, and he defeated Ricardo Williams Jr. in a USA-Puerto Rico dual meet.
Cotto spends much of his free time in Caguas, where his uncle Evangelista trains him. Cotto is very much a homebody who likes to be with his family, including his older brother Jose Miguel, cousin Jose Juan, and friend Ivan Calderon, who are all professional boxers.
"I am very comfortable in Puerto Rico," Cotto said. "It's my home. I don't feel I'm missing out on anything here. I never go out. I am with my brother, or I am with Ivan or I am at home with my family, or at the gym."
While he is comfortable in his native land, he does have the unenviable task of filling the shoes of fellow Puerto Rican Felix Trinidad. While the shoes are big, Cotto says he will find success and adulation by just being himself.
"I try not to think about it," Cotto said of the Trinidad legacy. "We were compared early on but we are different fighters. The pressure I feel is to win fights for the fans and not to take on the legacy of Trinidad."
Cotto has caught the eye of many boxing experts who have tabbed him as somebody to watch in the years to come. His record as a pro is 19-0 with 16 KOs. In his last outing in February, he TKO'd former world title challenger Victoriano Sosa in the third round. After Sosa rocked Cotto late in the second round, Cotto came back in the third, dropping Sosa three times in that frame, first with a left uppercut to the chin, the second time with a left hook to the head, and the final time with a left hook to the body. Cotto's left hook and body punching are his strengths. He also has the unique ability to switch from an orthodox stance to a southpaw stance.
"It's a matter of what the other guy does," Cotto said in reference to when he switches up his stance. "It depends on what's in front of me."
Against N'Dou he plans to pressure the durable Australian, seeing what happens and going from there. He's prepared to go the distance, but if has an opportunity to make it a quick night he will. Twelve of Cotto's fights have not made it past the fifth round.
"I'll see what he's got," Cotto said. "I'm in great shape. It all depends on what fight he'll bring to me."
Cotto said he is ready for a title shot. He is rated in the top 10 by the major sanctioning bodies. He knows he has to look impressive against N'Dou in order to secure a title shot in the ultra competitive 140-pound division.
If he continues at this current pace, dismantling opponents and showing poise the way he has, it will be time to sound the alarms, because Miguel Cotto is coming.
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E-Mail Sean Stowell at seanstowell@hotmail.com
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