MIGUEL COTTO AND AUSTIN TROUT SET TO SQUARE OFF DECEMBER 1 AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN IN A WORLD TITLE CLASH WHICH WILL BE TELEVISED LIVE ON SHOWTIME®
NEW YORK (September 24) – Though he proudly represents his native Puerto Rico every time he steps between the ropes, Miguel Cotto can easily call New York City his second home, as he is unbeaten in nine fights in the Big Apple since turning professional in 2001. On Saturday, December 1 the former Four-Time and Three-Division World Champion expects to have a full house cheering him on at the “Mecca of Boxing,” Madison Square Garden, as he looks to add another title belt to his collection when he takes on WBA Super Welterweight World Champion Austin “No Doubt” Trout in a fight that will be telecast live on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING.
“I am really excited to come back to my second home,” said Cotto. “Fighting at The Garden is always special for me and a true pleasure. There is something unique in the atmosphere and it means a lot to me every time I fight there because the energy of the fans gives me extra motivation. Austin Trout will be a challenge for me, but I will win my fifth world championship on December 1.”
“Miguel Cotto needs no introduction,” said Trout. “He’s a true champion and one of the best fighters of the last 10 years, but I’m the present and future of the sport and this is just the showcase I need to prove to the world that I’m one of the best, pound-for-pound. I can’t wait to fight in such a legendary place like Madison Square Garden; it’s every fighter’s dream.”
“We are thrilled to have Miguel Cotto back at The Garden in a spectacular fight against undefeated and world champion Austin Trout,” Miguel Cotto Promotions Vice President Hector Soto stated. “This will be like a homecoming party; a national Puerto Rican holiday. This is a solid show featuring one of the biggest superstars in boxing, Miguel Cotto, supported by hot prospects from the island of Puerto Rico showing their developing talent and potential. I cannot wait!”
“There are few events in boxing like a Miguel Cotto fight at Madison Square Garden,” said Golden Boy Promotions President Oscar De La Hoya. “The atmosphere is electric and it feels like all of Puerto Rico has come out to support him. Nights like these lift up the sport and I can’t wait to be in New York on December 1 to witness this great fight live.”
“Austin Trout is the WBA Super Welterweight Champion of The World, Miguel Cotto is a future hall of famer and great fighter who deserves all the accolades he receives,” said Greg Cohen, CEO of Greg Cohen Promotions. “Miguel Cotto could fight anyone and the fact that he sought out a young, hungry and talented world champion in Austin Trout speaks volumes of his character and competitive spirit. This fight will represent the changing of the guard, very similar to when a young Sugar Ray Leonard beat Wilfred Benitez. Austin Trout is going to be the next American superstar.
Some guys get lost in the moment while others embrace it. Austin will seize the moment. December 1 at Madison Square Garden, a star will be born!”
“We are proud to be working with Miguel Cotto Promotions on such a huge event,” said Stephen Espinzoa, Executive Vice President and General Manager, SHOWTIME Sports. “Miguel Cotto is an icon not only in the boxing world but also to New York sports fans. Bringing him back to this city to fight an undefeated champion in Austin Trout at Madison Square Garden is a perfect way to cap off what has been a landmark year for World Championship boxing on SHOWTIME.”
“We are excited to welcome the great Puerto Rican champion Miguel Cotto back to his home, Madison Square Garden, the Mecca of Boxing,” said Joel Fisher, executive vice president, MSG Sports. “Miguel is New York’s most popular fighter, and we’re thrilled that area boxing fans will be able to see him in our historic building – that will just have completed phase two of our transformation – once again.”
“Showdown: Cotto vs. Trout” is a 12 round battle between Four-Time and Three-Division World Champion Miguel Cotto and WBA Super Welterweight World Champion Austin Trout taking place on December 1 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The event is promoted by Miguel Cotto Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions in association with Greg Cohen Promotions, sponsored by Corona and will be telecast live on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING.
Tickets priced at $500, $300, $200, $100 and $50, not including applicable service charges and taxes, go on sale on Tuesday, September 25 at 1:00 p.m. ET. They can be purchased at the Madison Square Garden Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster charge by phone (866-858-0008) and online at www.ticketmaster.com or www.thegarden.com.
Hailing from Caguas, Puerto Rico, Cotto (37-3, 30 KO’s) has held a world title every year since 2004 while winning 16 of the 18 world championship bouts in which he has fought. Puerto Rico’s most exciting fighter and one of its greatest of all time, Cotto held the World Boxing Organization (WBO) Junior Welterweight crown from 2004-2006, successfully defending it six times before vacating it in order to fight for and capture the WBA Welterweight title at the end of 2006, a title he held for nearly as long. After controversially losing the WBA title to Antonio Margarito in July 2008, Cotto won his second welterweight belt in February 2009, knocking out Michael Jennings in the fifth round to become the WBO Welterweight champion. He lost the title in his second defense in November 2009, but captured the WBA Super Welterweight title in June of 2010 at Yankee Stadium in New York by stopping then-undefeated defending champion Yuri Foreman. Cotto successfully defended that title by stopping Two-Division World Champion Ricardo “El Matador” Mayorga in the 12th round in March of 2011 and then avenged his loss to Margarito in December of 2011, once again retaining his title and giving him true peace of mind. He has also added to his huge fan base by giving Floyd “Money” Mayweather and Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao their toughest fights to date. Next on his plate is Austin Trout, and if he defeats the New Mexico southpaw, it will be another world championship added to his Hall of Fame resume.
27-year-old Austin “No Doubt” Trout (25-0, 14 KO’s) has been boxing since the age of 10, but the 2004 United States amateur champion didn’t begin making noise in the sport until he began mowing through opponent after opponent while maintaining an undefeated professional record. By the tail end of 2009, he was 20-0 and the WBA international, WBA Fedelatin, and WBC Continental Americas super welterweight champion, but fights were hard to come by. In February of 2011 though, Trout emerged and captured a world championship by defeating Rigoberto “El Español” Alvarez, Canelo’s
older brother, for the WBA Interim Super Welterweight World Championship. He has since been elevated to full champions and defended his belt successfully three times against David “Destroyer” Lopez, Frank “The Italian Stallion” LoPorto and Delvin Rodriguez, setting up the fight of his life on December 1 against Miguel Cotto.
As in September, I once again ran out of gas in the 10th & 11th championship rounds of October & November with this column, but I recovered to complete them and will unleash a few more flurries to close out the 12th and final round.
In the first week of October, Hassan N’Dam won a UD over Curtis Stevens in an eliminator for the right to challenge Jermaine Taylor who defeated aging Sam Soliman to regain the IBF Middleweight title. How Taylor even earned this title shot is another story altogether, but it is all irrelevant as he is now the champion. However he will not have too much time to savor his victory as he has assault and battery charges pending against him and an upcoming court fight that may turn out to be the toughest fight of his life, just when things started to look up for him in boxing, we wish him luck.
