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Former WBO welterweight champion Miguel Cotto said Tuesday that Manny Pacquiao’s refusal to undergo Olympic-style random blood-testing for a potential March 13 fight versus Floyd Mayweather, Jr. “raises questions.”
“I am in complete awe with Manny’s reaction to this matter,” said Cotto, 29, who lost his crown to Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 KOs) by a 12th round TKO this past November.
“He has always been a great athlete and gentleman. Why in the world would he require restrictions or conditions for the tests? It is a golden opportunity for him to dispel all worldwide rumors surrounding his figure and use of enhancement drugs. His refusal to commit to the tests without conditions raises questions.”
Cotto (34-2, 27 KOs) is a valiant warrior in the ring and his only two losses as a professional now seem to be illegitimate.
Cotto suffered his first defeat to Antonio “Tijuana Tornado” Margarito (37-6, 27 KOs) in July 2008 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Margarito’s 11th round TKO victory over Cotto is widely considered to be bogus because the “Tornado” was subsequently caught cheating with illegal hand-wraps in his matchup versus Shane Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs).
If Margarito swindled Mosley, how can one not possibly believe that he also duped Cotto months before?
Pacquiao, who is rated by Ring Magazine as the No. 1 pound-for-pound boxer in the world, gave Cotto his second loss as a pugilist.
Pacquiao, the only boxer to ever win seven world titles in seven different weight divisions, has never been caught using performance enhancing drugs and he has passed every test he has ever taken.
Nevertheless, Cotto is justified to question Pacquiao now that he has so adamantly opposed Mayweather’s call for Olympic-style testing.
Pacquiao should simply agree to Mayweather’s demands and then badly batter him without the chance for any debates whatsoever to arise.
“Olympic type drug testing is the most efficient tool for the sport to secure fair play,” said Cotto, who represented Puerto Rico in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.
“My recommendation to all boxing authorities in the world is to implement it across the board. I would agree to it without hesitation or reservations. It is the only way to ensure that the outcome of a bout is the strict result of conditioning and ability. To magnify your talent with drugs is repulsive.”
Pacquiao is one of the greatest fighters in the annals of boxing and it is sad that he is enabling his reputation to be needlessly soiled.
Like Cotto correctly wondered of Pacquiao, “Why in the world would he require restrictions or conditions for the tests?”
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