Miguel Cotto Beats Joshua Clottey in Wild Welterweight War

Posted Jun 13, 2009 11:54PM By Michael David Smith (RSS feed)

Filed Under: WBO, HBO

Miguel Cotto defeated Joshua Clottey by split decision Saturday night in a wild WBO welterweight title fight that left the fans in attendance at Madison Square Garden standing and cheering, and gave Cotto what may have been the biggest win of his boxing career.

Cotto knocked Clottey down with a stiff jab in the first round, and he appeared to be the better fighter in the early going. But a key turning point came when Cotto was cut over the left eye by an accidental head butt in the third round. After that, the fight turned into less of a boxing match and more of a slugfest, and Cotto often appeared to be frustrated by the blood in his eye.

In the fifth round, Clottey went down at the end of a bizarre sequence in which Clottey rushed toward Cotto in the corner and Cotto responded by throwing his shoulder into Clottey and knocking him to the ground. Clottey was given a few minutes to recover and the fight continued.

The fight was a close, hard-fought back-and-forth battle after that, and Clottey at times appeared to be wearing Cotto down. But Cotto managed to do enough to stay ahead on the scorecards, and ultimately two of the three judges gave the fight to Cotto, by scores of 116-111 and 115-112. The third judge scored it 114-113 for Clottey.

Cotto improved his record to 34-1, and the only loss is a tainted one, to Antonio Margarito, who has since been caught putting plaster in his gloves. Clottey falls to 35-3; he also has a loss to Margarito on his record, and his only other loss was a controversial disqualification against Carlos Baldomir.

Clottey expressed disgust at the decision going against him afterward and asked for a rematch. If a second fight between the two of them would be as good as this fight, I'd be all for doing it again.

Cotto Wins Thrilling Slugfest

Boxer Miguel Cotto from Puerto Rico stands near a small puddle of blood after his WBO World Welterwight Title fight against Joshua Clottey from Ghana at Madison Square Garden in New York June 13, 2009. Cotto won the fight by a split decision. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton (UNITED STATES SPORT BOXING)

Reuters

NEW YORK - JUNE 13: Miguel Cotto punches Joshua Clottey during their WBO Welterweight title fight at Madison Square Garden on June 13, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Miguel Cotto;Joshua Clottey

Getty Images

NEW YORK - JUNE 13: Joshua Clottey enters the ring to fight Miguel Cotto for the WBO Welterweight title at Madison Square Garden on June 13, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Miguel Cotto;Joshua Clottey

Getty Images

NEW YORK - JUNE 13: Miguel Cotto fights with a cut after an accidental head butt by Joshua Clottey during their WBO Welterweight title fight at Madison Square Garden on June 13, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Miguel Cotto;Joshua Clottey

Getty Images

Boxer Miguel Cotto from Puerto Rico stares bloodied during the fourth round of a WBO World Welterwight Title fight against Joshua Clottey from Ghana at Madison Square Garden in New York June 13, 2009. Cotto won the fight by a split decision. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton (UNITED STATES SPORT BOXING IMAGES OF THE DAY)

Reuters

Miguel Cotto, right, of Puerto Rico, connects with a right hand on Joshua Clottey, of Ghana, during the third round of a WBO welterweight championship boxing match Saturday, June 13, 2009, at Madison Square Garden in New York. Cotto won the fight by split decision. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan)

Joshua Clottey, left, of Ghana, fights Miguel Cotto, of Puerto Rico, during the ninth round of a WBO welterweight championship boxing match against Joshua Clottey, of Ghana, Saturday, June 13, 2009, at Madison Square Garden in New York. Cotto won the fight by split decision. (AP Photo/Stephen Chernin)

Boxer Miguel Cotto (L) from Puerto Rico delivers a punch against Joshua Clottey from Ghana during the third round of their WBO World Welterwight Title fight at Madison Square Garden in New York June 13, 2009. Cotto won the fight by a split decision. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton (UNITED STATES SPORT BOXING)

Reuters

Boxer Joshua Clottey (R) of Ghana lays on the mat after being knocked down Miguel Cotto from Puerto Rico during the first round of their WBO World Welterwight Title fight at Madison Square Garden in New York June 13, 2009. Cotto won the fight by a split decision. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton (UNITED STATES SPORT BOXING)

Reuters

Getty Images

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

6-14-2009 @ 12:48AM

John Butler said...

gutsy inspiring performance by cotto i think he lossed though my score had him ahead by one possibly two...cotto deserved it though because he should of won it by way of stoppage but kept fighting cuz he's cotto the warrior but clottey won 4 or 5 rounds in a row sooooo...i had the fight 114-113 for clottey but i guess it could've went either way...very respectable fight for cotto tho

6-24-2009 @ 5:13PM

o0soul said...

Yeah, I had the exact same scoring. I feel bad for Clotty but not TOO bad. There seemed to be plenty of opportunities where he could have stepped up the aggression and at least knocked Cotto down.

6-14-2009 @ 2:54AM

cobra8227 said...

i have the fight tie at 9 but cotto took 11 and 12 for sure , 10 either way so could be cotto by 2 o 3 depends the judge

6-14-2009 @ 6:52AM

Doogstar said...

I think Cotto narrowly won. Clottey is a good fighter, but I think he went out like a pussy. When he went down, he seemed like he wanted more sympathy than anything. The ref did a great job of making him step up to the plate, like a fighter should. He was acting like he didnt want to fight anymore. Then in the 12th, after the accidental punch to the back of the head, he was an actor.......looking for a point deduction. I think it was a good fight. Definitely worth a rematch. However, if Cotto had both eyes, he woulda jacked Clottey's ass up. Im a fan of both, but more than anything, i Like to see a good fight.

6-14-2009 @ 9:17AM

ddkrspence said...

Even though I'm not a cotto fan, and was rooting for clottey, I think cotto won the fight. Clottey never seems to throw enough punches in the latter rounds. He could have easily won the fight, but just followed cotto around and let cotto hit him. Clottey would get busy at the end of the round, but that wasn't enough. During the middle rounds, when clottey was active all 3 minutes, cotto didn't stand a chance. But the last 2 rounds, clottey didn't do squat. He lost the fight because of himself, and cotto wanted it more. My respect to cotto.

6-14-2009 @ 10:31AM

Kid924 said...

Great warrior Cotto showed a heart that only true champions have

6-14-2009 @ 10:47AM

I agree with everything y'all are saying clottey should have locked him down in the latter rounds but 111-116 card was insane to me but i guess with the fight cotto brought to him in that situation you can't argue much against a win for cotto...very good fighter both of them very good fighters but clottey should've took better advantage of his opportunity

6-14-2009 @ 11:15AM

retrojoke said...

The headbutt in rd3 saved Clottey from a unanimous decision or maybe even a knock out. Really put them on even ground.

6-14-2009 @ 1:46PM

Jeff Johnson said...

I don't think Cotto won this fight. Clotty should have done more but he did enough to win or atleast get a draw.

6-14-2009 @ 4:13PM

Fabian said...

I had cotto winning the fight 114-113. If cotto would of had both eyes I think he would have knocked clottey out. I believe in the six rd he had him pin in the corner for 2 minutes and clottey looked like he was gonna go. cotto couldn't see the right hands coming and I believe he won this fight in the 12th round. Clottey didn't throw many punches in the 12th and therefore he lost in the 12th on my card. I would like to see a rematch but after cotto knocks out pacman. Thats if freddie roach allows him to step in the ring with a better and stronger boxer.... can't wait to see the marquez mayweather fight. I think mayweather will be to big for marquez but it will be a good fight

6-14-2009 @ 4:32PM

mherron111 said...

Clotter was Robbed...The judge that had the fight scored 116 to 111 should be fired.

6-17-2009 @ 1:56AM

spicsapian said...

watch the fight again,, and again,,, and again,,, it was close clotty was catching up but cotto did what he had to do to secure the fight... i agree 111 116 was way off. but cotto got it by a point or 2

6-14-2009 @ 4:37PM

This fight told me one thing....Cotto would get killed against Mayweather and Pacquiao!!

6-14-2009 @ 7:43PM

fncane said...

HBO Compubox numbers had Cotto being out hit by a large margin. Typically the boxer who out scores his opponent wins the decision. The judge who scored 116-111 should be investigated. The fight was very close maybe a point difference either way or a draw.

6-14-2009 @ 8:32PM

josep[h vega said...

I'm glad that Cotto won the fight, He is the better fighter.

6-14-2009 @ 11:23PM

i love to see cotto fight win or lose... but i agree that pacman or mayweather would beat cotto hands down... hes good but those 2 fighters are the best and ver hard to hit.. well maywether is hard to hit. i believe cotto would tag manny aot but manny pac is too good for cotto... between manny and mayweather i believe manny would destroy him.. mayweather is a great fighter but i dont think his tricks would work against a fighter like pacman... floyed is a safe fighter... he runs,, holds,, turns his back completely to opponents then complains about geting hit behind the head.. when are the refs for his fights going to penalize him for this? he does this in every fight... i dont think manny would fall for this style.. mayweather took the whole time to beat hoya and ricky hatton... manny took 2 rounds to destroy hatton... and i watched the fight over and over.. hatton used the same style against manny that he used for mayweather.. even though hattons camp say they where working on different things.. i didnt see it.. anyways they are all great fighters but as of now manny is king. and manny would beat any of them at this time.. i dont believe mayweather would dare get into the ring with the likes of pacman. hesto worried about his rep.. he knows manny is brobably the only fighter that can beat him at this time..

6-14-2009 @ 11:49PM

anybody who knows anything about professional boxing knows that it is scored by round and not amount of punches landed through the whole fight. yes clottey landed a little more punches but cotto won more rounds and scored a knocked down hence he wins the fight.

for mherron comment that pacman would beat cotto is ridiculous. He is way to small for cotto and if they did fight which they won't because freddie roach knows cotto is to big and if you watch the fight again Jim lampley even says so.

6-15-2009 @ 3:42PM

ERNIE SUMMERS said...

I truly beleive that Clottey won this fight by
at least 2 points.......In the last 5 rounds of
the fight, Cotto is basically running scared...
afraid of standing there and just fighting Clottey head to head!! How can you give rounds
to the boxer that is running away?? I think that
is total crap. It is true that Clottey didn't
get many punches in the last couple of rounds...
BUT that was because Pussy Cotto did NOT want to
box with him. Clottey was the only man to actually hurt Cotto a few times with some excellent uppercuts. Clottey was NEVER hurt by
Cotto.......yes, hte Knock down was really a
fluke.....he was more off balance than anything
else. It was not a REAL knockout in my eyes.
Clottey surely won this fight 115-113!! I hope
that there is a rematch!

6-19-2009 @ 12:04PM

Two small for Cotto.. He was way to small for Oscar Delahoya too. Pacman has lighting fast hand, unlimited stamina, great foot work, a great chin, he doesn't cut easily, plus he is one hell of a nice guy.

6-15-2009 @ 12:22PM

robrussen09 said...

I have been in the professional boxing business for 35 years at the highest of levels managing champions and co-promoting championship fights. What happen last night, in the Migel Cotto vs Joshua Lottery fight was one of the most blatant attempts ever to steal a fight for the home fighter. It is a major part of the reason that the popularity of professional boxing has fallen below that of human pit bull fighting (MMA). Clottey not only won the fight through all the basis of scoring a fight (effective aggressiveness,ring generalship, better./harder punches and defense) he also beat up Miguel
Cotto badly. This was not a fight that could be stolen and kept in house as their own dirty little secret. It was seen on world wide television thanks to HBO and it prove, at the very least, the fact that two of the three judges
were at best incompetent and, at worse true cowards. If the "fix" was not in then this ranked high up on the list of whatever comes just below that. Those judges should be suspended and investigated. A rematch should be ordered.
At one point, late in the fight and during a round the referee Arthur Mercanti, Jr went to one of the t-shirt security guys at ringside and said "get all your guys ready". When the bell rang ending that round he again went back to the security man and said "Get all of your guys down here and ready" in anticipation of an unpopular stoppage that was obviously due to come. Mercanti, being the very skilled and experienced pro that he is, knew the fight should be stopped shortly and that it would be VERY unpopular
with the largely Puerto Rican fans in attendance. Mercanti did an excellent job throughout the fight doing his best to protect the fighters and keep them motivated. He did, however, fail to fully protect Cotto by stopping the fight when it rightfully should have been. Boxing has run out of eyes to get blackened by such thievery that happened at Madison Square Garden but it things like what happened last night that forces guys like me, who genuinely love the sport, to call
it out when this happens and write articles and books about such outrageous decisions. As Don King once told me "if you can't stand the heat don't go into the kitchen". If the NY Commission can't take constructive criticism from experienced veterans like myself then maybe, just maybe, it should get out of the boxing business completely.