On Saturday, Floyd Wayweather and Miguel Cotto squared off in a super welterweight title fight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The end result was perhaps unsurprising -- Mayweather emerged victorious and snatched Cotto's title belt by unanimous decision to stretch his record to a staggering 43-0 -- but the fight itself was very telling and just may move us one step closer to the fight we all really want.
Mayweather and Cotto went toe-to-toe in a thrilling fight -- perhaps one of the closest Mayweather has had in some time. Cotto dominated the middle rounds of the fight, bloodying Mayweather's nose and mouth and had the crowd screaming for the cocky superstar's head. But in the end, Mayweather's unparalleled conditioning, technique and sheer skill outlasted Cotto. Mayweather, as always, won a fight that ultimately looked easy for him.
But of course, this isn't the match people really want to see. They want to see Mayweather take on Manny Pacquiao. They want to see the two best boxers of this generation (and two of the best boxers of any generation) face off once and for all for the complete braging rights to who is the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world.
The clamor for the superfight has been going on for years and has been close to happening a few times. At some point, the fight will happen. There is too much money on the table for it not to. These two fighters are also running out of legitimate opponents, apart from each other.
Mayweather has an unbelievable ability to sell fights based on how much sheer animosity he can engender from audiences. Pacquiao has an unbelievable ability to sell fights based on his rabid core of fans and a nationalistic pride as possibly the largest celebrity of any type to come out of the Philippines. But at some point, all that will be left are tomato cans. That won't be enough to sustain their individual legacies.
The fight will happen sooner rather than later. It will likely not happen this year, as Pacquiao fights Timothy Bradley on June 9. But it would not be surprising if the fight to end all fights is announced by the end of the year.
Mayweather-Cotto was nice, but in the end it was only an appetizer. These two fighters may just be getting us ready for the main course.
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