Mayweather vs. Cotto: Why a Knockout Would Make Cotto a Star

Miguel Cotto has a shot at eternal glory, and some huge future paychecks, if he can KO the undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr. in their May 5 bout at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. 

This is certainly not going to be an easy task. Money May is hard enough to hit, let alone knock out. He has some of the greatest defense the sport has ever seen, and that is a huge part of the reason he is 42-0 as a professional, and why Cotto is listed as a plus-450 underdog at Bovada. 

That said, it is certainly not impossible, and Cotto definitely has the power to pull it off. Junito is 37-2 in his professional career and 30 of those wins have come by KO. 

He is a straight-ahead, determined, brawling-style fighter. While this is not well-suited to take down Money, it gives him the old puncher's chance. And if he can land a big blow, it will shake the boxing world and instantly propel Cotto into superstar status. 

This would be the knockout heard 'round the world. Boxing has not seen an upset that would get this kind of press since Buster Douglas came out of nowhere to take down "Iron" Mike Tyson. 

That KO instantly gave Douglas worldwide recognition to such a degree that he is forever remembered by boxing enthusiasts despite accomplishing nothing else of note in his boxing career. 

Cotto, on the other hand, has already been flirting with superstar status. He is an extremely accomplished fighter. 

This is a boxer who was on the doorstep of being considered one of the truly elite boxers until he suffered his first loss, in controversial and brutal fashion, to Antonio Margarito.

Just three fights later, he suffered the second loss of his career when he was dominated by Manny Pacquiao. That loss bumped him out of the spotlight and sent him back with the pile of second-tier fighters chasing Pacquiao and Mayweather. 

A win here, and he would thrust himself into consideration for being the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world, and he would set himself up to be a featured draw in the sport.