Yuri Foreman vs. Miguel Cotto

[Avrusha92]

WBA super welterweight champion Yuri Foreman, a Brooklyn resident, will fight three-time world champion Miguel Cotto in the main event.
This will be the first fight ever in the new Yankee Stadium.
Yuri who is an Orthodox Jew who is undefeated will face off against Puerto Rican's own Miguel Cotto in "The Stadium Slugfest" on June 5th.

Yuri Foreman: Journey between two worlds
Foreman (28-0, 8 KOs), a 29-year-old from Brooklyn, N.Y., is the first orthodox Jew to win a world championship in nearly seven years. Born in Gomel, Belarus, and raised in Israel, Foreman immigrated to Brooklyn. The 2001 New York Golden Gloves Champion turned pro in 2002 and began studying to become a rabbi three years ago. He knocked down defending champion Daniel Santos in the final round of a 12-round fight on November 4, 2009, en route to a decisive and unanimous decision victory and Israel's first boxing world title.

Cotto (34-2, 27 KOs), from Caguas, Puerto Rico, has held a world title every year since 2004 and will be looking to extend that streak with his challenge of Foreman. Puerto Rico's most exciting fighter, Cotto held the World Boxing Organization (WBO) junior welterweight crown from 2004-06, successfully defending it six times before vacating it to capture the World Boxing Association (WBA) welterweight title at the end of 2006, a title he held for nearly as long. He won his second welterweight title in February 2009, knocking out Michael Jennings in the fifth round of a 12-round fight to become the WBO welterweight champion. He lost the title in his second defense, on November 4, 2009, to Manny Pacquiao. Notable victories for Cotto include Sugar Shane Mosley, Zab Judah, Joshua Clottey, Paulie Malignaggi, and Demarcus Corley.

Lets take a look at the fighters.

Yuri Foreman- Statistics
Rated at Super Welterweight
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Nationality Israel Israeli
Birth date August 5, 1980 (1980-08-05) (age 29)
Birth place Gomel, Belarus
Stance Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights 29
Wins 28
Wins by KO 8
Losses 0
Draws 0
No contests 1

Miguel Cotto-
Real name Miguel Ángel Cotto
Nickname(s) Junito
Rated at Welterweight
Height 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Nationality Puerto Rico
Birth date October 29, 1980 (1980-10-29) (age 29)
Birth place Caguas, Puerto Rico
Stance Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights 36
Wins 34
Wins by KO 27
Losses 2
Draws 0
No contests 0

What do you predict the outcome of this fight will be?
Who will win?
Who do you want to win?

I know Yuri Foreman very well, and I have trained with him in Gleasons Gym in Downtown Brooklyn, this man is a fighter and wont get down!
That man has a good chance of winning Cotto.
Cotto is also a very tough fighter, and is a great boxer.
Im routing for Foreman, because he has a great career ahead of him.
But on the otherhand, Cotto is a better fighter, and has the bigger chance of winning...
Who knows.

Thoughts?

Watch this video to know more of Yuri Foreman:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZlZKyRtiQs

 

[Loveless]

The stat's might suggest it'd be close but I suspect otherwise. Despite his size advantage, Foreman doesn't knock many people down. Cotto may not be what he was but he's still far too good to get outpointed by Foreman and there's no way he'll be knocked down.

 

[Avrusha92]

Yeah, but Yuri Foreman is more hungrier than ever, I dont know man..
Cotto wont get knocked out, but I am sure this will go to the scorecards...
Cotto has two losses, Foreman is undefeated but with one draw.

Cotto has a stronger chin, and doesnt get knocked down.
Yuri doesnt get knocked down.

Man, I dont know but I think..Cotto will win, but who knows? Yuri has been training real hard for this fight like never before. This will be a huge win for him.

Like I said, I know how Yuris been training, and everything..I know him very well, as I know a lot of pro boxers since my best friend is a boxer, and my fathers a Official Boxing Photographer, and I train with many boxers.

GO YURI!

 

[People's Champ]

Cotto has two losses yes, but one was against Margarito who may have cheated in that fight as well. His other loss was against PacMan. Tell me who, besides Money, that can beat him? So not exactly bad losses, tho he was tore up by Pac.

I'm a Puerto Rican here in the Bay Area, so of course my interest, my favorite boxer is going to be Cotto. And right now I don't know where his head is at. I'd like to think that he is just as hungry to get back to relevance. Yuri doesn't knock out people, so his chances are going to the cards. Cotto however, has knocked out people, in fact 27. I'm not sure Yuri has fought anyone as good as Cotto. I'm calling for a KO win for Cotto.

 

[Avrusha92]

Your right, yuri has not fought anyone as good as Cotto has, although Yuri is undefeated it doesnt mean a damn thing if he won some bums.

Yuri is a very good boxer, but he doesnt have what it takes to beat Cotto, although I go for Yuri, hes my hebrew boy Were both Russian Jews, and live in the same area (and Ive trained boxing with him when i was a kid)

Go Yuri!!! I see a good future for him He is the underdog in this fight.

 

[jmt225]

I really, really like Yuri Foreman, and I really want him to continue his success, but I think right now Miguel Cotto could be the worst possible opponent for him.

You cannot let Cotto's losses against Pacquiao and Margarito fool you into thinking that this guy isn't one of the very best, toughest Welterweights in the World. His wins over Mosley, Zab Judah, Clottey, etc. prove that to be an indisputable fact. Plus, even though he lost, he put up a very valiant effort against arguably the pound for pound best fighter in the World, Manny Pacquiao.

Now, just because I'm praising Cotto, that doesn't mean that I'm completely counting Yuri Foreman out. Yuri has a 4 inch height advantage, and an actual, working brain to go with it. If he fights a perfect, smart fight, which best believe he is very much capable of, then he should have no problem winning a decision victory over Cotto.

However, I just cannot count Cotto out just because of a height disadvantage. He's been such a warrior in every single one of his fights, that it's damn near impossible to pick against him. But, for now, I'm undecided. The only thing I know for certain is that this is going to be a GREAT fight and I, for one, cannot wait to see it.

 

[Avrusha92]

ii might be attending this fight, Yuris a friend of mine and might give my family a few tickets, since he's a family friend him and my mom grew up in the sane town in Gomel, Belarus.and we are from the same area in Brooklyn, NY. I know Yuri out of the rung, he's a great guy and I cannot wait to see him fight.

This fight will be exciting! A lot more exciting than whatever any wrestling show would put up (not bashing wrestling, just extremely pumped for yuris fight)

 

[Super Hans]

Cotto is just too good for foreman at this stage in his career,he is battle hardened and has been in the ring with the best.I think cotto stepping up in weight is a good thing for his career as this is a weaker division than WW.He has also got the fire in his belly after his father passing away recently and has been training like a demon according to reports.
I was wondering the bliz if you could post some pics of you and all these boxers that you know in the post a pic thread,would be interesting to see them.cheers

 

[Avrusha92]

I will see what I find on my computer, most of the pics I have are from when I was 13 or14 I have pics with Zab Judah, Paulie Malignaggi, Luis Collazo, Jorge Teron, Yuri Foreman, Curtis Stevens (all brooklyn boys who trained in Starret City Boxing and Gleasons Gym) I have pics with Irish Boxer John Duddy, some other friend (who's a pro boxer) Frankie "el gato" figueroa, and Edgar Santana.... A woman boxer Maureen Shea with her trainer Hector Rocca (who trained Hilary swank for the movie Million Dollar Baby)
and many more if I find em...oh and Dmitri Salita (who was 30-0 until he got beat by Amir Khan)

 

[People's Champ]

Ok so the fight is tomorrow. I'm hearing a lot of talk about how much smaller Cotto is compared to Yuri, in height and frame. I'm also hearing how much Cotto might be in trouble, considering his past couple fights.

My thing is this: if Cotto is right mentally, then he will win this fight. He took a great amount of punishement in his last fights. Hopefully it hasn't affected him to the point where he could be discourged if he starts getting hit with some good shots. This is his last chance to get back to the top of the mountain. If he were to lose, then that would be the end.

I think Cotto understands the situation he's in and is ready to regain his form. While Yuri is a great boxer, Cotto is no over the hill boxer and still has a chance to get back to being one of the best in this division. I truly believe Cotto wins, and I'm still thinking that its by KO. 10th round.

 

[hemanthjava]

I keep telling people, it's not that I don't like Miguel Cotto as a fighter. I just think that relative to the hype that he has received throughout the entirety of his career, he doesn't quite measure up. He can handle a certain level of fighter, and the version of Shane Mosley that he fought - talented and accomplished yet a little shot - may be about the limit to which he can go.

 

[Super Hans]

So i watched the fight this morning and i was very impressed by cotto.He clearly carried his power up in weight,it was unfortunate for Foreman slipping but i had it 7-1 in rounds and he clearly didnt have the power to ko Cotto so he was losing the fight anyway.I was impressed by how much heart Yuri showed but as i stated in an earlier post it was too much too soon,i think he can still be champion again in the future.

Reports now coming out the pacquiao camp are that if the mayweather fight falls through then they would be interested in a rematch with cotto as he now has a belt at 154 and thus pac could extend his legacy by becoming an 8 weight champion.My advice to Cotto would be STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM PAC!!

 

[jmt225]

Yeah, Miguel Cotto showed last night that just because he's inferior to Manny Pacquiao, that doesn't mean he's still not one of the Pound for Pound best fighters in the World.

Cotto was absolutely tremendous last night. He completely controlled pretty much every round with his left jab and movement. Yuri didn't have an answer for it. It's unfortunate that Yuri had the knee problems and slipped those two times, but there's no way that could force me to believe that he ever stood a chance in this one, good knee or not. Cotto just looked amazing.

Major props to Yuri Foreman though. He was obviously in a lot of pain, but he didn't give up and kept fighting until it was officially stopped by the referee. You have to respect that. Someone with that kind of heart, and the fact that he does have an incredible amount of talent... there's no doubt he'll come back from this and look better than ever in his next fight.

 

[Super Hans]

Yeah jmt cotto is a top ten p4p,hes the type of fighter who will win belts but when he comes up against a true great like pac or if he had fought mayweather he would just lose the fight every time.I do believe he is a future HOF candidate,he has had a stellar career.I would like to see him fight Martinez next,while he would be an underdog for this fight,he has a decent chance to beat him and it would be a unifacation bout as well.


EDIT. Or a redemption bout with that fucking assclown MARGACHEATO.

 

[Avrusha92]

Great Fight Last Night!
Yuri proved that he's a fighter and doesn't give up, I was routing for Yuri and I was suprised he continued and carried on with the fight with a knee problem he's a true warrior! I respect the he'll out of Yuri, he has a lot of heart, passion, and that never give up and never back down thing about him. I know Yuri outside of the ring and he's a great man, I actually used to spar with him at Gleasons, and I've trained a little with his wife(very nice and beautiful woman)


As for Cotto: Cotto is back in the game! After a few losses he's back and better baby!
Cotto has to be one of the top 10 pfp boxers, I agree with whoever said that earlier


As for Yuri: Yuri is a great fighter, and he went 9 rounds with Cotto which I think it's a big step up for him since he never fought any great fighters.

Overall this was a great fight, and Yuri & Miguel are both warriors

Yuris up and coming, and I see a good future for The Lion of Zion Yuri Foreman!

Davay Belarus!!! (Go Belarus! In Russian)

 

[DigitalNight]

This was my first "Sit down and watch boxing with friends that enjoy the sport" night ever.

First fight was pretty awesome. Greene stood up to a flurry of strikes and had the chin to stick it out against Martirosyan. Though Greene couldn't pull off the victory as far as the cards went, I give him props. I've been told both are not ready for the "prime-time players" in their weight class, but with time I do believe Martirosyan could live up to the hype in the coming months. I liked his footwork.

Yuri Foreman stepped up to the plate knowing his knee isn't what it use to be, but showed great movement until the first big slip. Then things moved down hill from that point on. Cotto carried himself well in this fight even keeping up with Foreman's footwork step for step. My friend Jeremie enjoyed that a hell of a lot and commented that the "Cotto of Old" is back.

The stoppage due to the "rouge towel toss" was handled extremely well by Referee Arthur Mercante Jr. He wanted to see a quality fight in honor of his father, so he helped the cause by making a ton of great calls and put an end to the chaos that happened. I would enjoy boxing a lot more if all the officials were stand-up guys like Mercante Jr.

 

[Mr. Steve]

Foreman has balls of steel. First thing I'm gonna say.

The match was great, and it was more interesting due to Foreman simply going even with a bum knee. Without that setback, it would have been a better match than it already was.

That towel toss was well handled by the ref, and even asked if Foreman wanted to stop, which was answered with a no.

Cotto looked better than before, IMO. Paced himself, dictated the rounds, kept his demeanor about him. His trainer change is well received for me.

And people STILL hate the dude in Puerto Rico. They seem to overlook the fact that Paquiao is a beast, and stigmatized the dude as being the scourge of boxing.

 

[People's Champ]

First off, major props to Yuri. He was being dominated by Cotto for much of the fight, and could have easily used his knee injury to quit. Instead, decided to stay in there and fight with Cotto. He had to have known that Cotto was much stronger than he was but still stood in there til the end. That's a warrior.

Now as far aas Cotto is concerned, I thought he fought extremely well. He used his jab effectively, his foot work was much much better than in past fights, and he stuck to the gameplan. He was committed to boxing, not getting carried away with trying to hit Yuri with the big shots. You saw that left hook to the body that he used in past fights to take his opponents out. I think having Steward as his trainer will do wonders for Cotto, as Steward is one of the best trainers in boxing. Cotto didn't seemed bothered by Yuri's hand speed or footwork. A great night for Cotto.

I disagreed with Kellerman's thought at the end of the fight where he basically said Cotto will or should no longer look to fight the big names because he is a big name in himself and could use that for the rest of his career. To me, it came off as tho he felt that Cotto could no longer hang with the "big boys" like a Paul Williams or such. I completely disagree. I think Cotto still feels he has a lot to prove, gain, and show in boxing. I doubt Cotto will turn down any fighter, including a rematch with Pacquiao if the Mayweather fight doesn't get done.