Wins by Cotto, Pavlik have mild significance
By Kevin Pedersen
PA SportsTicker Boxing Editor
Miguel Cotto and Kelly Pavlik each were successful in their respective returns to the ring on Saturday. It is too early to tell, however, whether they are really “back.”
In fights that were scheduled as nothing more than confidence-builders, both men accomplished their goal as they cruised to their respective victories.
Cotto, fighting for the first time since a brutal - and now controversial - 11th-round technical knockout loss against the currently banned Antonio Margarito in July, used the first three rounds of his bout with Michael Jennings just to spend time in the ring.
Usually always on the attack, Cotto stayed in a defensive crouch, avoiding punches before he eventually pounced and stopped his opponent at 2:36 of the fifth round.
“It was great to go back into the ring and be able to study my opponent for the first couple of rounds,” Cotto said. “Then I started to go to the body and then to the head and then I started to let my hands go and I just threw my punches.”
Cotto’s face and confidence were bruised in defeat, but the long layoff and win over Jennings has him feeling rejuvenated.
“I took eight weeks off - until I felt good mentally and physically,” the 28-year-old Puerto Rican said. “A fight like this will give me more confidence to get back to where I was.”
Pavlik had suffered his first loss in a higher weight class against the legendary Bernard Hopkins, who toyed with the 26-year-old at times and cruised to a lopsided unanimous decision in October.
Back at 160 pounds, Pavlik dominated Marco Antonio Rubio, who, despite being the WBC No. 1 contender, looked to be nothing more than a sparring partner.
“The Ghost” routinely backed up Rubio with constant 1-2 combinations of a left jab and right hand before his opponent retired on his stool after the ninth round without landing any significant punches.
“I’ve been on the biggest stage, but when you come back home to fight, you can’t explain it,” said Pavlik, who said where he was “mentally” coming back from the loss was his biggest obstacle.
It is assumed that both Cotto and Pavlik are right back where they were prior to their losses, but only stiffer competition will be able to prove that.
The fifth-round TKO gave Cotto the vacant WBO welterweight title and also moves him into the conversation of bouts this summer against other titleholders such as Shane Mosley or Joshua Clottey.
Pavlik also will fight again this summer, according to his promoter Bob Arum, who said he wants the Youngstown, Ohio native to get back in the ring “as soon as possible.” Vernon Forrest, Felix Sturm and John Duddy have been listed as possible opponents.
Not until after those bouts will we really know if Cotto and Pavlik are back near the top of the list for the sport’s top pound-for-pound fighters.
It’s hard to tell how much a loss is really behind someone when they win a fight in which they weren’t even tested.
GOOD NEWS: Welterweight Oscar Diaz, who collapsed seven months ago during a bout with Delvin Rodriguez, was released from the hospital Monday.
Diaz, 26, suffered a near-fatal brain injury, which left him in a coma for two months after his 11th-round TKO loss to Rodriguez last July.
After a brutal 10 rounds, Diaz collapsed in his corner when he rose for the 11th. He was rushed to the University Hospital in San Antonio, which quickly performed a two-hour operation to relieve swelling on his brain.
Diaz had been hospitalized since and will enter a local rehabilitation facility, according to the San Antonio Express News. The newspaper also said he is “alert” but not yet walking - although the doctors are optimistic.
His opponent from that night was one of many happy to hear that Diaz’s condition continues to improve.
“There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about Oscar,” Rodriguez said after hearing the news. “He is a great boxer and more importantly a great human being. I will always keep Oscar and his family in my thoughts and prayers.”
WHAT TO WATCH FOR: It isn’t a title fight but the upcoming James Kirkland-Joel Julio bout on March 7 should produce plenty of fireworks.
Kirkland, a 24-year-old light-middleweight prospect, has stopped his last five opponents to push his record to 24-0 with 21 KOs.
The 5-9 southpaw battered Brian Vera on November 22, knocking him down three times en route to an eighth-round TKO.
Julio, who also is 24, has a record of 34-2 with 31 KOs. He lost his most recent bout to Sergiy Dzinziruk in a WBO light middleweight title fight in November.
The Colombian, who was once considered to be one of the top prospects in the sport, should be a big test for Kirkland, who has yet to face an opponent with as much power as Julio.
The main event of HBO’s “Boxing After Dark” card in San Jose should be one of the year’s best action-packed fights.
Question or Comment? Email Kevin.Pedersen@pa-sportsticker.com.
