Cotto vs. Margarito 2 Results: 5 Possible Next Opponents for Miguel Cotto

On Saturday night Miguel Cotto, 37(30)-2(2), TKO'd his longtime rival Antonio Margarito, 38(27)-8(2), to retain his WBA junior middleweight title, closing his foe's eye and forcing the ringside physician to call a halt to the bout after nine rounds. 

In defeating Margarito, Cotto not only gets revenge for one of his only two career losses, but he also re-establishes himself as one of the top active fighters and among the sport's biggest draws.

When asked at the post-fight press conference who he might like to fight next, Cotto deferred, stating only that his most immediate plan was to get some rest and recover from what was a very physical night's work.

But the speculation over who he would fight next was starting up probably even before Saturday night's fight was done.  

First of All: Not Manny Pacquiao

You are probably going to read and hear a lot of crazy Cotto fans now declaring that their hero is ready for a rematch with Pacman. Well, I consider myself a fan of Cotto's, too, in a fashion. He is certainly one of my favorite fighters to writer about. 

And I have no interest in writing about him getting beaten up again by Manny Pacquiao. And that is what would happen.

People who look to Pacquiao's fight last month against Marquez as some sort of blueprint for what Cotto might hope to do are kidding themselves. Cotto is a terrific fighter but he is not Juan Manuel Marquez. 

And I don't want to hear about how if they fought at 154 it would be different, that Cotto would somehow develop some magical surge in power that would stop the smaller Pacquiao. They can fight at whatever weight anybody picks and Manny Pacquiao still hits Cotto way more times than Cotto hits Pacquiao, and from a wider variety of angles, and with more explosion and speed. 

Delvin Rodriguez

In my own rating of the card Saturday night, Delvin Rodriguez, 26(14)-5-3, just edges out Brandon Rios for the second star of the night, behind Cotto. His unanimous decision victory over Pawel Wolak, who he fought to a draw against last July, was gutsy, hard-nosed and skillful. It should put him in most peoples' top 10 at 154 pounds. 

He would be a long-shot against Cotto, but at the post-fight press conference he expressed an eagerness and a confidence to take on the big names. And with his two performance this year against Wolak, the veteran Rodriguez has developed into a popular New York City-area fighter in his own right.  

Saul Alvarez

The 21-year-old WBC champion Saul Alvarez, 39(29)-0-1, is fresh off his own impressive TKO victory against Kermit Cintron.

A lot of folks regard Cotto and Alvarez as No. 1 and 2 in the 154-pound division, and a title unification fight between them would be a superfight.

Except this time, maybe instead of holding it in front of 20,000 crammed into the garden, they decide to hold it in front of 100,000 crammed into Stadium Azteca in Mexico City.  

Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.

WBC middle weight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., 44(31)-0-1 is another name that will be mentioned often as a potential superfight for Cotto. The son of the legend continues to fight his way out from under his father's Hall-of-Fame shadow, most recently by dispatching the not particularly highly regarded Peter Manfredo Jr.

Freddy Roach and Alex Ariza have built the younger Chavez into a physical and imposing middleweight. At this point, I believe he would be a tougher out for Cotto than Margarito was.  

Still, this is a fight Cotto should be able to win and like the fight with Alvarez, it would draw huge numbers. It would give Cotto the opportunity to add another belt at another weight class.  

James Kirkland

Last month James Kirkland, 30(27)-1(1), put the entire boxing world on notice when he came back from a first round knockdown against Alfredo Angulo to score a knockdown of his own later in the round and ultimately batter Angulo over six rounds before recording a TKO win. 

Kirkland has speed and power and a quickly-developing skill set. He looks like the future of the division. A fight with Cotto would tell boxing observers whether or not the future is now. 

Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Earlier in this slideshow I dismissed the idea of Cotto rematching with Manny Pacquiao. The fact that I'm suggesting he might possibly fight Mayweather, 42(26)-0, does not imply that I think he would have a better chance for a victory against Floyd. 

But if he is determined to take a fight he has little chance of winning against one of the sport's ultra-elite, I think it makes more sense for him to do it against the undefeated WBC welterweight champ. Back in the day this was a fight that a lot of us really wanted to see and I still think Cotto's style could force the ultra-talented Mayweather to turn in an interesting performance.