Floyd Mayweather has fought some of the toughest men alive, but one man stands out from the pack.
In his esteemed career, ‘Money’ destroyed an array of top-quality boxers, with very few pushing him to his limits. Mayweather even branded Pacquiao an ‘easy’ fight.
However, when someone earns his respect, the American is more than happy to give them praise.
And on one occasion, Mayweather left the ring with a great deal of admiration for what his opponent brought to the table.
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Floyd Mayweather says Miguel Cotto was the toughest opponent he ever faced
On May 5, 2012, inside the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, Floyd Mayweather and Miguel Cotto went to war in a match-up between two boxing legends.
For the most part, the undefeated fighter controlled the action, but the win didn’t come easy, with his rival pushing the pace and forcing Mayweather to utilize his phenomenal boxing IQ to find his way to victory.
Prior to the bout, the icon had always said that Emanuel Augustus was his toughest opponent, but after sharing the ring with the Puerto Rican for 12 rounds, he changed his mind.
In a post-fight media scrum uploaded to YouTube by Fight Hub TV, the icon explained: “Emanuel Augustus was tough, Miguel Cotto was tougher. Miguel Cotto is the toughest fighter I’ve faced.
“What Miguel Cotto did, he tried to come on strong in the later rounds, which forced me to fight harder. He brought, I don’t want to say the best out of Floyd Mayweather, but he made me start throwing combinations, the right hook mixed with the uppercut.
“I knew he was going to be a tough competitor from the beginning. Miguel Cotto didn’t get here through luck. He worked hard and took the hard road like me. It was a very exciting fight.”
Floyd Mayweather made a huge amount of money from fighting Miguel Cotto
At the peak of his powers, Cotto was a massive superstar, with boxing fans around the world tuning in every single time ‘Junito’ set foot inside the squared circle.
With that in mind, it’s no surprise that his opponent was able to capitalize financially.
Following the contest, it was revealed that Mayweather made an astronomical amount of cash to fight Cotto.