SPEED KILLS

By Gerry Ramos

HOLLYWOOD – The one factor that destroyed David Diaz, Ricky Hatton and boxing idol Oscar De La Hoya was what also did Miguel Cotto in.

“Speed kills,” veteran HBO boxing analyst Larry Merchant said moments after Manny Pacquiao scored a 12-round stoppage against the stronger, bigger, but battered Puerto Rican to win the World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight title Saturday in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“The sudden explosiveness of Pacquiao tonight is just too much for a good man and a good fighter,” added Merchant. “This is a difficult moment for a proud warrior.”

Like Diaz, Hatton and even De La Hoya, Cotto admitted Pacquiao’s quickness caught him off-guarded.

“He’s too much strong on my way. The jabs he threw really made the difference. I didn’t saw from where the punches were coming so I wasn’t able to protect myself,” said Cotto, whose busted face bore cuts from just about everywhere.

In all, Pacquiao landed 336 out of the 780 punches he threw to Cotto, while the former Olympian from Caguas, connected only 172 of the 597 blows.

Percentage wise, Pacquiao was ahead 43 percent to Cotto’s 29 percent.

For Merchant, The Filipino boxing icon’s victory over Cotto is his best.

“This is Pacquiao’s best performance given the quality of opponent and the volume of punches he received,” said the veteran boxing analyst.