Manny Pacquiao hoping for Miguel Cotto Knock Out to carve a place in boxing history

Miguel Cotto is determined to halt Manny Pacquiao's march towards the history books at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas when he defends his WBO welterweight title against the world's top pound-for-pound fighter on Saturday night.

Fighting fit: Manny Pacquiao is ready to make history against Miguel Cotto in Vegas

Yet Pacquiao is the man with momentum and he could rewrite the history books by becoming the only prize fighter in history to claim seven world titles in seven weight divisions if he defeats Cotto.

Cotto, who has 34 wins (27 KOs) and just one defeat to his name, is beloved by the Puerto Rican nation and as much a symbol of machismo and humility as Pacquiao is in the Philippines.

He faces the man who is regarded as the best pound-for-pound boxer on the planet in the wake of the Filipino's eight-round demolition of Oscar de la Hoya 11 months ago and the second-round flattening of Britain's Ricky Hatton in May.

Pacquiao, who has won 49 fights (37 KOs) and lost three, appears unstoppable. What has been startling is Pacquiao's ability to carry his power up the divisions. Both De La Hoya and Hatton were bigger men, yet De La Hoya at welterweight and Hatton at light-welterweight were dismantled by the speed of the tenacious southpaw.

Cotto is a slow starter, and if he cannot find a way to be the aggressor in a fight, he sits back and counter-punches. He also sets clever traps for opponents and although his handspeed and movement are slower than Pacquiao's, he will be dangerous in later rounds.

Pacquiao's trainer Freddie Roach said: "Manny is moving up a weight class but I am very confident in my guy and we are 100 per cent ready for this fight. I feel that he is going to knock Cotto out."

Cotto is unperturbed. "What they say and what they do does not concern me," he said. "I'm going home with the belt."

Pacquiao said: "This is the most important fight of my career. If I win, it will be history for boxing and for the Philippines."

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Miguel Cotto out for Pound-for-Pound respect against Manny Pacquiao on HBO Pay Per View

The Fight Factory Gym is in a converted warehouse in a small industrial park in Tampa, Fla. The banners covering the walls trumpet the virtues of all things Miguel Cotto.

But the banner that catches the eye immediately upon entering the gym has Manny Pacquiao's face in the crosshairs of a rifle scope. Across the top of the banner are the words: "On Nov. 14 the world will see who is the real king of the ring."

Miguel Cotto, the WBO welterweight champion, has long ago been out of the conversation about Pound-for-Pound. He doesn't even argue that point anymore.

But welterweight? Come on!

After a two-hour workout at the gym last month, a confident Cotto talked about defeating Pacquiao, whose acclaim grew exponentially after he beat Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton - two larger men who were supposed to put the former 130-pound champion in his place.

His confidence is contagious. He left no doubt in my mind that he has everything he needs to beat Pacquiao. The only qualms I have are with his corner where the inexperienced Joe Santiago will have to match wits with Freddie Roach, Pacquiao's longtime trainer and chief strategist.

Thanks to Roach, Pacquiao showed the kind of power and resourcefulness that was necessary to deal with a bigger opponent. But this is the first time that he will fight a welterweight champion in his prime.

"I'm working for everything I think he's going to do, and I'm pretty sure that we're not going to have any problems the night of the fight," Cotto said.

After taking a beating from Antonio Margarito, who is suspected of using loaded gloves in the fight, and losing his title, many felt that Cotto was damaged goods. Even Cotto had his doubts when he made his comeback against Michael Jennings.

In his last fight, Cotto suffered severe cuts about his left eye before going on to win a 12-round decision over Joshua Clottey. Cotto learned something about himself and his new corner of Santiago and cutman Joe Chavez in that bout. He learned that he could deal with almost anything that was thrown at him in the ring.

"A lot of people wondered why I didn't allow the fight to be stopped, but I spent more than nine weeks preparing for the Clottey fight to make a great fight and a great show for the fans all over the world," said Cotto. "There was a lot of pride on the line with myself and my family. No matter what the situation, no matter what the vision in my eye was, I always told the referee, 'I'm good.' "


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Miguel Cotto Interview on knocking out Manny Pacquiao on the ring!

Do you see yourself knocking him out or claiming a decision?

Cotto's answer: " I never come in to knock any guy out. I just try to do my work in the ring. If I hit the guy with a good punch or a combination, I will go for it. Or if I can get a decision. I go to do my work
and if I hit him with a good punch, I am going for it."

What do you think Manny’s best attributes are?

Cotto's Answer - "I don’t pay attention to his details but there are some things in particular that we worked on in training camp. I try to put myself in the best condition I can and I will try to capitalize on any kind of mistake my opponent will make. If Manny makes any kind of mistake I am going to capitalize on that."

Do you think the two pounds will have any affect on you?

Cotto's Answer - "When we took this fight we decided that we were fine with 145. We knew we could do it and we knew we would be at our best the next night. We would not have taken this fight if we didn’t think I was going to be at my best the next night after the weigh-in."

All Quotes from Miguel Cotto.

This Saturday (Nov 14) Pacquiao vs. Cotto pay-per-view telecast begins at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT. The TV event has a suggested retail price of $54.95 and the telecast will be available in HD-TV. Check your local cable or satellite dish reciever for much more details.

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