Cotto retains title in split decision

On Saturday night, Madison Square Garden’s sold-out arena was packed with Latino fans, mostly of Puerto Rican descent.

Scattered throughout the crowd of 17,734 were orange thunder sticks as well as replicas of their native flag, which they, respectively, slammed together and waved aloft while screaming ear-searing support for their countryman, Miguel Cotto.

In five, previously successful appearances at the Garden, Cotto had drawn from their energy, including in a November 2007 unanimous decision over Shane Mosley, and three other June victories accomplished the day before the Puerto Rican Day Parade, which takes place here today.

Inspired by his fans, Cotto dropped his rival with a left hook in the first round, overcame a third-round cut suffered as the result of an accidental head-butt, rebounded from a mid-fight surge by challenger, Joshua Clottey, and recovered to sweep the final three rounds with effective combinations delivered from behind a stiff jab to successfully defend his World Boxing Organization welterweight title by split decision.

Judge Don Trella and John McKaie scored the fight, respectively, 116-111, and, 115-112, for Cotto (34-1, 27 knockouts), while Tom Miller had it 114-113 for Clottey (35-3, 20 KOs), a 32-year-old Bronx resident who was born in Ghana.

In victory, Cotto, 28, successfully rebounded from his July 2008, 11th-round knockout loss to Mexico’s Antonio Margarito, proving that he had not suffered significant psychological damage during that bout in which he was beaten bloody, suffered a broken nose, took a knee once, was knocked down once and was cut over his left eye.

“The fight was more difficult because of the cut. It was a hard fight, but I thought that I was winning all the way,” said Cotto, who weighed in one pound lighter than the 147-pound Clottey and was coming off of February’s fifth-round knockout of Michael Jennings at the Garden.

“When we came together and embraced after the fight, we told each other that we’re friends,” Cotto said. “We paid each other respect and said that it was a great fight. There’s no animosity whatsoever.”

Known for his toughness, having never been stopped or even previously knocked down, Clottey was initially dejected following the decision, telling promoter Bob Arum, “Oh no, I can’t believe it, I’ll never box again. I clearly won the fight.” Arum, however, implored Clottey not to quit, vowing to bring him back “right away.”

“I went in there and I chased him around the ring, and I hit him good. I did everything that I had to do to win,” said Clottey, who said that he hurt his right knee when he was slammed to the canvas.

“I had a nerve problem for the rest of the fight,” said Clottey, adding of the first-round knockdown, “It was beautiful. Cotto actually pushed me back and drove me back and caught me off balance.”

Cotto, who also slammed Clottey to the canvas following a fifth-round clinch, resurrected a potentially derailed career in a crossroads fight, setting up possible bouts against WBO light middleweight and welterweight champ Paul Williams, or, even International Boxing Organization king Manny Pacquiao, who received Fighter Of The Year honors on Friday at the Boxing Writers of America awards dinner.

“I would like to see if we can make Pacquiao-Cotto. That’s the fight I want to make for November,” said Arum, who sat next to Pacquiao during the fight.

Cotto vowed that he would fight “whoever is out there,” adding, “I am here, and I am here, and I am ready to fight.”

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lsatterfield@digitalsports.com