Heroes & Villains

The moment has finally arrived. Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KOs), the man considered as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, takes on Puerto Rico's Miguel Cotto (34-1, 27 KOs) tonight at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas for the WBO championship belt. Both fighters agreed to fight at a catch-weight of 145 pounds. During Friday's weigh-in, Pacquiao tipped the scale at 144 pounds while Cotto was at 145.

Here is the tale of the tape:
-- Age: Pacquiao 30, Cotto 29
-- Height: Pacquiao 5-6 1/2, Cotto 5-8
-- Reach: Pacquiao 67", Cotto 69"
-- Chest normal: Pacquiao 38", Cotto 39"
-- Chest expanded: Pacquiao 41", Cotto 41"
-- Waist: Pacquiao 28", Cotto 32"
-- Thigh: Pacquiao 20", Cotto 22 1/2"
-- Calf: Pacquiao 15", Cotto 12"
-- Neck: Pacquiao 16", Cotto 16"
-- Fist: Pacquiao 10", Cotto 11"

The preliminary bouts will start at 6 p.m. PST. The live round-by-round scoring with highlights will begin at approximately 8 p.m. PST. on this site: SportsFanLive.com/heroesvillains

-- 6:55 p.m. PST: Both fighters are in the arena. Cotto is sitting ringside, watching the prelims with his family. Pacquiao is in his dressing room with his entourage. More to come....

-- 8:15 p.m. PST: Last of the prelim bouts nearly over. Pacquiao-Cotto bout should start at approximately 9 p.m. PST.

-- 8:21 p.m PST: Magic Johnson, Derek Jeter and Mark Wahlberg in the house...

-- 8:24 p.m. PST: JC Chavez Jr. scores an unimpressive win over Rowland. Some boos in the crowd...Main event is about to start.

-- 8:28 p.m. PST: More faces in the crowd...Roberto Duran, Will Ferrell and P. Diddy. La Diva singing the Philippine nation anthem.

-- 8:31 p.m. PST: Ednita Nazario singing the Puerto Rican national anthem...
-- 8:33 p.m. PST: Ramiele now singing the Star Spangled Banner...

-- 8:37 p.m. PST: Pacquiao now entering the ring with his entourage to the sounds of "Thunder Struck" by AC/DC.
br/>-- 8:41 p.m. PST: Cotto entering the ring with his entourage to the sounds of "Stronger" by Kanye West.

-- 8:44 p.m. PST: Pacquiao looks relaxed, smiling to the cameras. Cotto looking real intense.

-- 8:46 p.m. PST: Michael Buffer doing his thing...Let's get ready to rumble!

ROUND 1 -- Cotto throwing jabs early. Cotto lands the first significant punch of the fight with a straight jab. Pacquiao a little tentative. Pacquiao misses with the left, Cotto counters. Round 1 goes to Cotto.

ROUND 2 -- Cotto's jabs are moving Pacquiao backwards. Pacquiao connects with a flurry of punches. Cotto lands a great left hook to the head but Pacquiao counters with a straight left to the side of the face. Crowd roars with each Pacquiao combination. Pacquiao scores a late flurry to take control of the round. Round 2 goes to Pacquiao.

ROUND 3 -- Pacquiao's speed is beginning to bother Cotto. Pacquiao lands a short right punch that knocks down Cotto in the middle of the ring. Pacquiao is beginning to land his right hook. Pacquiao's footspeed and handspeed are starting to dictate the fight. Round 3 goes to Pacquiao (10-8).

ROUND 4 -- Pacquiao scores with a quick right jab and straight left to start the round. When Pacquiao is stationary, Cotto goes to the body. Both fighters exchanging some power shots in the middle of the ring. Pacquiao hits Cotto with a quick left uppercut to the head and knocks the Puerto Rican down for the second time in the fight. Round 4 goes to Pacquiao (10-8).

ROUND 5 -- Cotto's early attack has been tempered by Pacquiao's counter-punching. Pace has slowed down compared to the last round. Cotto gets Pacquiao on the ropes. Cotto connects with a right hand that stuns the Filipino fighter. Round 5 goes to Cotto.

ROUND 6 -- Pacquiao is clearly ahead on power punches landed. Cotto seems to have recovered from his two knock downs. Pacquiao's movement has stopped momentarily, fighting more flat-footed. Pacquiao lands two quick punches to the head that backs up Cotto against the ropes. Cotto lands a straight left to Pacquiao's jaw to get out of trouble. Pacquiao landing the heavier punches in this round. Crowd-pleasing flurry from both fighters at the end of the round. Round goes to Pacquiao.

ROUND 7 -- Pacquiao lands a solid right hook that stuns Cotto. Pacquiao lands a heavy straight left that snaps Cotto's head. Pacquiao's speed is dictating this round. Cotto slips a jab to Pacquiao's chin. Pacquiao is landing the more significant blows in this round and Cotto's bigger body is not huge a factor. Round goes to Pacquiao.

ROUND 8 -- Cotto seems to have forgotten his jab and Pacquiao's confidence is growing. Pacquiao's lighting-quick movement is the difference the fight. Cotto lands a quick jab that snaps Pacquiao's head. But Pacquiao backs up Cotto with his non-stop attack and Cotto can't seem to figure out how to counter Pacquiao's relentless attack. Pacquiao connects with two left hands near the end of the round that gets a rise from the crowd. Cotto has a small cut below his right eye. Round goes to Pacquiao.

ROUND 9 -- Cotto showing a lot of courage despite getting blitz by Pacquiao's right-left combinations. Cotto scores with two quick glancing shots to the head. Pacquiao corners Cotto and delivers two solid shots to the head. Pacquiao continues to pepper Cotto with quick power shots, especially with the left hand. Pacquiao catches Cotto with a big left cross and the Puerto Rican backs into the ropes. Cotto is now bleeding on both eyes and his nose. Round 9 goes to Pacquiao.

ROUND 10 -- Cotto's trunks are stained with blood. Cotto is backpedaling to avoid engaging in the middle of the ring with Pacquiao, who is clearly in control of this fight. Some boos in the crowd as Cotto is reluctant to exchange blows with Pacquiao. Round goes to Pacquiao.

ROUND 11 -- Cotto starts the round by throwing his left jab, something he should have been doing throughout the fight. A chant of "Manny, Manny" screams from the pro-Pacquiao crowd. Pacquiao corners Cotto, but he backs the Filipino fighter with a solid left jab. Pacquiao trying to press Cotto into a slugfest. Some more boos in the crowd as Cotto continues to back up. Round goes to Pacquiao.

ROUND 12 -- Pacquiao pushes Cotto into the ropes with a devastating straight left. Referee steps in to stop the fight 55 seconds into the round. PACQUIAO WINS BY TKO.

Pacquiao claimed his seventh world championship belt and reestablished his position as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. Cotto suffers his second defeat as a professional.

There is some truth to Teddy Atlas' observation about Miguel Cotto being "damaged goods" and, before we dismiss Atlas' personal unbiased opinion as baseless, the proof is in the DVR.

Atlas, the longtime boxing trainer who also serves as a TV analyst, recently explained that often times when fighters suffer a severe beating like Cotto did against Antonio Margarito last year, they become gun-shy and doubt creeps into their head.

That doubt was evident in Cotto's last fight, a 12-round split decision over Joshua Clottey in June. Some thought Clottey won the fight. I recently reviewed that fight in its entirety (with the sound down, of course), and I must say I had a hard time giving the fight to Cotto.

When Cotto began bleeding profusely above his left eye after an accidental head butt from Clottey, he began to fight cautiously. You could sense Cotto was more worried about the cut than his opponent.

Cotto fought Margarito in July 2008, a slugfest Margarito won decisively and Cotto left the ring that night bleeding from the nose, around the eyes and his ears. It was the kind of pounding that would make any proud boxer question his ability. Margarito won by TKO and Cotto was battered and severely bruised physically and emotionally.

Miguel Cotto, left, suffered a TKO loss to Antonio Margarito in 2008 in Las Vegas.

A year later, though his wounds have healed, Cotto is still scarred by that devastating loss.

This is exactly what Atlas was referring to when he said Cotto is damaged goods. Atlas is not convinced Cotto has gotten rid of the memory of his bloodbath against Margarito - who is currently suspended from the sport for reportedly having a plaster-like substance in his gloves when he fought Shane Mosley in January in Los Angeles.

Cotto's handlers are saying the Puerto Rican fighter is back to being Miguel Cotto, and that the former unbeaten fighter is at the top of his game and ready to take down pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao on Nov. 14.

Is he? Can a fighter who just a year ago was knocked down twice and lost buckets of blood rebound that quickly? Can Cotto honestly say he will not have any visions of Margarito when he steps into the ring at the MGM Grand Garden on Saturday night, the site of his only professional defeat?

Pacquiao is not Margarito. He's better.

The Filipino six-time world champion may not be as big as Margarito but he's faster and more elusive. I anticipate Cotto, a more natural welterweight, to try to bully the smaller Pacquiao with body shots, but that would mean Pacquiao would have fight flat-footed, which he rarely does. Cotto has never fought anyone with Pacquiao's slippery movement, and he will have a hard time cornering the southpaw who has now added a solid right hook to his repertoire.

The one advantage Cotto (34-1, 27 KOs) will have when he enters the ring is size, having fought at 147 pounds most of his career. And the catch-weight of 145 shouldn't bother Cotto. But being the undersized fighter didn’t slow down Pacquiao in his convincing victories over Erik Morales, Oscar De La Hoya, David Diaz and Ricky Hatton.

While Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KOs) has his sights set on a huge payday against Floyd Mayweather, Saturday’s bout is more of a therapy session for Cotto.

Freddie Roach, Pacquiao's trainer, is the best at breaking down a boxer's weaknesses and bad habits, and he has seen plenty of bad habits from Cotto.

Roach revealed during an episode of HBO's 24/7 that he doesn't think Joe Santiago, Cotto's lead cornerman, is experienced enough to make the proper adjustments during the bout. Obviously, Santiago disagrees with Roach's assessment but the stark contrast between the two corners are overwhelming.

Pacquiao likes to start fast and Cotto's physical and mental state will be severely tested early. Even if Cotto survives the first barrage, I just don't see him weathering the storm and the sustained barrage of punches that Pacquiao will send his way. Prediction: Pacquiao wins, ninth-round TKO.

Let the countdown begin for Pacquiao vs. Mayweather.

Note: Heroes & Villains author Joel Huerto will do a live round-by-round scoring of the Pacquiao-Cotto fight on Nov. 14. To read his live round-by-round blog, visit SportsFanLive.com/heroesvillains.