In all the fervor following Miguel Cotto's dominant victory over Sergio Martinez on June 7 for "Maravilla's" WBC middleweight title, Canelo Alvarez's name was thrown about as the clear next opponent for Cotto. Canelo is tied up with Erislandy Lara on July 12, however, and Top Rank CEO Bob Arum has brought up Timothy Bradley as a name to watch.
At 33 years old with a slew of brutal wars under his belt, Cotto may not have many more fights left in him. His star has never been brighter, so he's unlikely to step in the ring against lesser-known fighters such as Gennady Golovkin or Peter Quillin, regardless of whether or not they might present more interesting challenges. Instead, Bradley, whose name is well-known for his fights with other stars like Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez, is more likely to get the shot.
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Bradley's camp said there haven't been any serious talks about a matchup, but his trainer Joel Diaz said that he would welcome the fight. "We think this is a good fight, it would be a good opportunity," Diaz said.
"We know that Cotto is strong, intelligent and he did very well against Martinez. We talked about a fight at 155 pounds, and that is a lot of weight but it is a good opportunity."
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The weight limit of 155 lbs. is curious for a Cotto-Bradley fight since Cotto is currently the middleweight champion. He fought Martinez at a 159-lb. catchweight, one pound under the 160-lb. middleweight limit, but contesting the belt at 155 lbs. could be viewed as farcical.
If Bradley isn't the choice, Golovkin may be the next in line. He is set to face Daniel Geale on July 26 at Madison Square Garden, which is Cotto's second home, and he is one of the sport's most entertaining fighters. Golovkin is an undefeated knockout artist, and a spectacular victory over a fighter like Geale may nudge him into the proper stratosphere to get a high-profile Cotto opportunity.
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