Canelo Alvarez defeats Miguel Cotto by unanimous decision

Canelo Alvarez made a case for himself as boxing’s next superstar after winning a unanimous decision over Miguel Cotto and win a piece of the middleweight title in Las Vegas.

And in doing so, Alvarez becomes first Mexican to win junior middleweight AND middleweight titles and set up the possibility of a megafight with Gennady Golovkin, the middleweight champion who was watching at ringside.

Alvarez won the WBC version of the title that Cotto vacated days earlier for not paying sanctioning fees. The fight was for a 160-pound title, though it was fought at a catch weight of 155 pounds.

And Alvarez, whose only loss came to Floyd Mayweather Jr., took it to Cotto early and hard — winning rounds with big right hands and uppercuts starting from the opening bell. Cotto tried to box and had his moments, but Alvarez was clearly ahead as the Mandalay Bay casino crowd stood on its feet as both fighters traded punches in the final rounds.

As the rivalry matchup between the Puerto Rican and Mexican idols went on, Alvarez began landing more of his punches as he patiently stalked Cotto around the ring.

Cotto boxed well at times and landed flurries of punches, but his didn’t seem to have nearly the same power as those thrown by Alvarez.

In the final rounds, Alvarez caught Cotto with a series of punches that seemed to shake him some though he was never down and never appeared in real trouble.

Bruh. pic.twitter.com/mL3hLyWf6W #CottoCanelo

— Idk (@JValentineNYC) November 22, 2015

Alvarez was a 3-1 favorite coming into the bout, largely because he is 10 years younger than Cotto and a bigger puncher. 

And although the ages didn’t seem to make a difference, the ringside judges were surely influenced by the much harder punches that the red-headed Alvarez landed. 

Alvarez won by scores of 117-11, 119-109 and 118-110. The Associated Press had him ahead 116-112. Cotto was credited with throwing 629 punches to 484 for Alvarez, but Alvarez landed 155 to 129 for Cotto.

I'm sensing a rematch.

Miguel Cotto loses MSG fight to Austin Trout

Days before stepping into the ring to defend his World Boxing Association super welterweight title against Miguel Cotto at Madison Square Garden, Austin Trout was looking to get the respect that comes with the belt he won two years ago.

The basically unheralded Trout — who goes by the nickname "No Doubt" — boasted, "I'm the present and future of the sport."

Trout was facing some pretty long odds in defeating his opponent in the boxing arena which might be called Cotto's house.

Cotto's 7-0 record in the Garden and the hostile pro-Cotto crowd of 13,097 could attest to his popularity  in his home away from home.

In an entertaining and action-packed fight, that was pretty much even up until the final rounds, Trout (26-0, 14 KOs) backed up his words and beat Cotto (37-4, 30 KOs) in a 12-round unanimous decision.

The 27-year-old Trout managed to dominate the final two rounds and won easily on all three scorecards.  Two judges had it 117-111 while the third scored the fight 119-113 — all for Trout.

After the fight, fans waving Puerto Rican flags booed the judges' decision that denied their native son another title.

Trout, whose game plan was not to stand in front of the 32-year-old Cotto, was satisfied with the win.

"I've been preparing for this fight for my entire life,' said Trout after the bout. "Fighting Miguel Cotto is a dream come true, it was the hardest fight of my career."

Cotto, who regained his composure after a hard Trout left hand in the first,  still had Trout on the ropes with a wild flurry in the 10th round that had the crowd roaring with approval.  But it was Trout's southpaw style that prevailed by not giving Cotto any clear open shots.

"I had to show him I was the bigger guy and push him back a couple of times to show him he had no advantage," said Trout.

Trout landed 238 punches, according to Compubox, while Cotto landed 183.  Trout also landed 192 power punches to 154 scored for his opponent.

It was a tough day for Puerto Rican boxing fans in general.  Earlier in the morning, the family of Hector "Macho" Camacho buried one of the sports legendary competitors in the Bronx and twelve hours later, they watched one of their favorite sons fight what could be his last bout at Madison Square Garden.

Cotto initially left the ring in disgust after believing he won the 154-pound fight.  It was his second straight loss.  He said he would evaluate his career after some time off and a little rest.

For Trout, it could be the start of a new love affair with the old arena.

"I hope they bring me back to New York," he said.  "I love fighting in the Garden."

For Cotto — who might have heard the final bell in a place that hosted so many of his greatest moments — the cheers were still ringing after the fight.

Asked if he thought he had won, Cotto, while blowing kisses out to the crowd, said, "Who do you think won the fight? Just listen to those fans."

Yuri Foreman Works Out & Knee Looks Ready for March 12 Fight

Yuri Foreman, the first orthodox Jew to win a championship fight in nearly 70 years, worked out today in a Manhattan gym before getting ready to take off for his Super Welterweight match up against Pawel Wolak March 12 in Las Vegas.  It is Foreman's first fight since losing the title last June.

At Kingsway Gym, Foreman (28-1, 8 KO's) looked sharp and showed no lingering signs of his surgically-reconstructed right knee which he hobbled around on in that infamous fight last June 5 at Yankee Stadium against Miguel Cotto.

Once again Foreman will be in the same arena as Cotto, but in different fights.  Last June, Foreman--the Brooklyn rabbinical student--fought courageously in a WBA Junior Middleweight Championship fight against the challenger Cotto.  It was the first boxing match at the new Yankee Stadium and produced one of the most surreal scenes in boxing history.  And that's saying a lot.

The fight was marred after Foreman slipped in the seventh round and re-injured an already bandaged right knee.  Foreman, the 2001 Golden Gloves champion, continued fighting while hopping around on his left leg while his wife, Leyla Leidecker,  screamed at trainer, Joe Grier, to throw in the towel.

After Cotto began punishing the valiant Foreman, the towel was tossed.  Then it got weird.

Cotto raised his arms in victory as the ring filled with reporters, trainers, officials and photographers.  In a bizzare scene, the referee Arthur Mercante Jr., threw the towel back and let the fight continue.

Foreman's game but desperate comeback was stopped in the ninth after it became clear he couldn't defend himself anymore.

That gutsy performance is remembered by many and is a testament to Foreman's resolve and heart.

Foreman will be fighting on the "Relentless" undercard against Wolak, while Cotto (35-2, 28 KO's) will face Ricardo Mayorga (29-7-1, 23 KO's) for twelve rounds in the World Super Welterweight Championship at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Foreman, the 30 year-old former Super Welterweight champ, worked out in front of the New York press and looked fit, strong and ready to go. He moved around the ring for ten rounds and there were no tell-tale signs of damage to that once-crippling right knee.

He'll be facing Wolak (28-1, 18 KO's) who is the #7 ranked Super Welterweight riding a seven-bout winning streak over two years.  Four of those were knockouts by the 29 year-old Jersey guy.

The right-handed Foreman is know for his speed and movement.  He has been called "pure and natural counter puncher" by most experts.  He'll have to be wary of Wolak's hard body punches.

In his last fight, Foreman's knee gave out before his heart.  He went to the canvas twice and most fans felt the fight was over when he couldn't move and it wasn't until two rounds later when Cotto caught Foreman with a hard left hook to the body that Mercante called it off.

It was one of the most entertaining fights of last year and made Foreman a hero.  But if  Foreman had his way, it would have ended differently.  After that fight he said, "We're world champion.  I fight. I didn't want it to stop. I wanted it to continue."

March 12 could be the first step to Cotto-Foreman II.

Yankee Stadium Wins By KO

By Tony Mangia

COTTO DEFEATS FOREMAN TWICE ON SATURDAY

Saturday night's first fight at the new Yankee Stadium will be remembered for one of the strangest episodes in modern boxing. The WBA junior middleweight championship fight, between Yuri Foreman and challenger Miguel Cotto, was marred by Foreman's corner throwing in the towel only to have referee, Arthur Mercante Jr., throw the towel back and continue the fight.

The shenanigans began in the seventh round after Foreman (28-1, 8 KOs), the Brooklyn rabbinical student, slipped and re-injured an already bandaged right knee. Foreman continued to box, courageously on one leg--earning the respect of the fans. Foreman valiantly came out in the eighth with as much mobility as a peg-legged stork. Foreman's wife, Leyla Leidecker, began to scream at the fighter's trainer, Joe Grier, and his corner to stop the fight while Cotto began to punish the slow-moving Foreman. The single-legged fighter didn't have much of a chance when Grier threw the white surrender towel.

Cotto (35-2, 28 KOs) raised his hands in victory and his corner people, photographers and promoters crammed into the ring. In a bizzare scene, Mercante pushed everyone from the canvas and asked Foreman if he wanted to continue. He even told the lame fighter, "You're fighting hard and I don't want to see you lose like that." This is where things get sticky. What fighter, worth his weight, is going to back out? A trainer is there to make sound decisions that a boxer's heart won't. The fight resumed and Mercante defended himself later by saying it was a good fight and " I did the right thing to let it continue."

Mercante was hired for the inaugural fight in tribute to his late father, who refereed the last fight (Ali-Norton) at the old stadium 34 years ago. Junior, is no stranger to controversy. In 2001, he was the referee at the Khalid Jones-Beethavean Scottland fight on the USS Intrepid when Scottland collapsed in the ring, then lapsed into a coma. He died a week later. Mercante later blamed the fighter's death on "being banged around in a elevator" as they took Scottland to an ambulance.

Rules (no matter how stupid) Are Rules

New York State Athletic Commission rules state: only the referee can stop a fight. Throwing in the towel is illegal in New York and only an athletic commission inspector can enter the ring and plead with the referee to end a bout. In this case, Mercante ignored the inspector and let Foreman continue to fight. Mercante put Foreman's health and life in jeopardy after he saw the inspector and tossed him from the ring. The NYSAC supports Mercante and claims he followed rules and didn't cross any lines.

Mercifully, Mercante stopped the match at :42 seconds in the ninth after Cotto landed a vicious shot to the right side of Foreman's body. The Jewish fighter crumbled. At this point, Cotto was picking up steam and it would only be a matter of time before the courageous Foreman would be beaten like a boiled potato. Foreman lost his title by TKO, but said he knew the fight was over.

There was more blame--thankfully--than blood to spread around. First, of course, is the referee. He can't override the trainer's decision to halt a fight---even if towel throwing is illegal in the New York ring. He knows what a white towel means. Second, is the inspector who didn't get the attention of Mercante. He saw Grier toss the towel and made too little an effort to stop the fight. Thirdly, some of the blame goes to Foreman's trainer, Grier, who---first of all---know that the white towel is illegal and should have made sure the inspector saved his fighter. Even Foreman's wife knew better and almost got into the mix. She threatened to punch out Mercante.

Cotto's Redemption?

Two things were apparent on Saturday night---Miguel Cotto still has it and Yankee Stadium never lost it. After his last two fights, where Cotto was unrecognizably pulverized by Antonio Margarito and Manny Pacquiao---who was in attendance---the Puerto Rican fighter, and local favorite, looked strong. He has the option of staying at 154 pounds or go down to 147 for his next fight. Yuri Foreman was valiant, in a losing cause, but his guts and heart will never be questioned by people who saw this fight.

The stadium never looked better and is sure to host more fights. Only 20,000 people attended---way under the 30K anticipated---but Cotto and Foreman aren't exactly the biggest names out there. In order to lure big-time fights, Yankee Stadium would have to contend with expansive Cowboys Stadium and Las Vegas, which draw either the big crowds or high rollers. There is even talk with WBA promoter Bob Arum for a return boxing event at the stadium. How about October, Manny and Floyd?

SHORT JABS

436, If You Include the Mets Players

At Citifield, 427 Mets fans set a Guiness World Record for most people crocheting simultaneously. I guess Oliver Perez was on the mound.

The Spelling Bee is I-N-I-Q-U-I-T-O-U-S

On Saturday afternoon, I had a choice of watching Nascar on Fox, Rugby on ABC or The Scripps Spelling Bee on ESPN. I'm one of those guys who doesn't consider chess, cup-stacking or putting letters together a sport but I can't understand the Nascar announcers' grits and biscuits lingo and I'll be damned if I can figure out anything about rugby. I think most of these kids are good spellers because they had to learn to spell their own names. Some kids have every letter of the alphabet in their first name alone and one didn't even have a single vowel in his whole surname. I don't think it's fair when one kid has to spell nephrocytary or genethliac while another kid gets jehu.

Boston Celtics fan, Mayor Bloomberg, Woos LeBron to New York

New York's trans-fat-free mayor continues to campaign for LeBron James as a Knick. Bloomberg contends that by bringing James to our city, he would generate $57.8 million for the city. In a website video, the mayor said: " Willis on one leg, Clyde with the steal, Dr. J soaring from the line---Come on, Le Bron, write the next chapter in New York City basketball history." Hey Bloomie, Dr. J never played for a NYC team. He was a Net and 76er.