Will not fighting Cotto hurt Mayweather's Legacy?

Question

I mean, will he go down in history as one of the best in history BUT, also as a fighter who dodged better opponents for better paydays??

What im saying is, what will be said of Mayweather by historians 20 years in the future??

Answer 1

yes. not fighting cotto always will leave mayweather legacy with that "fighter that he dodged" mark. bowe dodged lewis, RJJ dodged a rematch with hopkins and a fight with calzaghe. lewis dodged byrd(would have been a good fight) tyson dodged lewis when he was the champ. if the historians were there during the mayweather period they will remember that he dodged cotto. if the historians are too young they will only see the HBO highlights

Answer 2

I think avoiding or making excuses for not wanting to fight Cotto would make Mayweather look bad, especially when he chooses or flirts with the idea of fighting Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton again. He has already defeated both men. What more does Mayweather have to prove in fighting Hatton again, after an easy victory? Cotto on the otherhand would be a new challenge that comes with new proof of possibly beating another big name opponent.

Historians will consider Mayweather a great fighter, but not an all-time great. Many will say he seemly ducked potential young threats around him to pursue easy, aging hall of famers to make his resume look good. Some may say that money was more important than his own legacy, which would probably make some wonder how can he be considered great, if he's not concerned about legacy.

Answer 3

the only career that will be hurt would be cotto's if this fight didnt happen...floyd doesnt need to fight cotto to prove anything...everybody said the same exact thing before he faught de la hoya, and for some reason idiots said the same thing before he fought hatton...

if u were in his shoes you would rather fight for money anyway...

Answer 4

It will be a mark on his career if he never fights Cotto simply because of all the what ifs. Mayweather would be the favorite, but Cotto is a bigger threat than DeLaHoya or Hatton. As long as it stayed a boxing match PBF would most likely win, Cotto's body attack would be hard to implement on someone as defensive and mobile as Mayweather. Maybe why Mayweather isn't motivated by the idea and prefers big money rematches that will make him richer even if the don't do as much pay-per-view.

Answer 5

It already is read this article:

http://www.boxingnews24.com/2007/12/mayw...

Answer 6

Yes, not fighting Cotto will hurt Mayweathers legacy, but fighting Cotto will hurt Mayweather even more, I think Cotto would beat Floyd.   I was impressed by Cotto's victory over Mosley, another fighter Floyd shamelessly ducked, and I really expect any young, solid welterweight of the caliber of say Clottey, Margarito or Williams to give Floyd a lot of trouble.  Floyd couldn't fight many of these guys and remain unbeaten, he simply isn't that dominate at 147.  Cotto is the best at welter weight right now, and Floyd would best be served avoiding Miguel.  A loss would hurt his legacy more that the dishonor of ducking the best young welterweights near the end of his career.  20 years from now, if Floyd is undefeated when he retires, it will be a moot point.

Answer 7

Guys, honestly the people who want to see PBF and Cotto go at it are the true boxing fans. Others who want to see DLH or Hatten fight him again are not true boxing fans and I'll explain:

1. A rematch with Oscar will only become the rematch PBF had with Castillo. A more dominant win for sure. He  beat Oscar by split and I would think that Floyd is not going to let it get that close in a rematch. Also, Oscar doesn't have the power he used to have to KO Floyd. So it would be Floyd in a UD boxing Oscar out.  

2. A rematch with Hatten, as is being circulated more recently, would only serve to show how he dominated the little guy again. This time a KO much earlier. As I watched the fight Hatten wasn't hitting Floyd hard enough for Floyd to respect him. He tried to push Floyd around and fustrate him but that was the extent of Hattens effectivity. He pitty-patted Floyd for much of the fight.  He landed few hard blows. Hard as far as a little guy moving into a territory that he only fought once in.

Now Cotto, on the other hand would prove to be a fight that we would all want to see. Cotto straight forward, hard-hitting, and relentless. Cotto would prove to be the hardest hitter PBF has ever fought. Now that is something I want to see. Admittedly I am a Cotto fan but a fight between them would be worth it.



Truth be told if he beats Cotto he has nothing else to prove. Until then he will look more like a dodger than a boxer when all is said and done.

Answer 8

The troll above has duplicated my avatar and once again proven that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. I hope I can provide the young lad with an honorable role model. Maybe in a couple decades he will actually grow out of his childish preoccupation. It really is amazing how many different accounts this guy has opened, I don't know how he finds the time, he must live on his mom's computer

Answer 9

avoiding the prime welters will hurt floyds legacy. he will become a great but not an all-time great.

Answer 10

More than likely it will hurt Mayweather's legacy , but that all depends on how things play out. A couple years from now if Cotto is still on top and undefeated and Mayweather is still fighting and not retired and he never faces Cotto then yes I think it should and will. Now if Cotto ends up taking a loss especialy to one of the lesser fighters he is facing this year(gomez/mayorga) then i dont think it will matter much , for now I think its too soon to say depends on how things play out.