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Foreman Lands Top-Notch Trainer

Will be amply prepared for June fight

by
Marc Tracy
February 25, 2010
Steward in 2001.(Jamie McDonald/Allsport)
Steward in 2001.(Jamie McDonald/Allsport)

Further proof that Yuri Foreman, the Israeli middleweight who’s also studying to be an Orthodox rabbi, isn’t messing around when it comes toppling his favored opponent, Miguel Cotto, when they meet on June 5th in Yankee Stadium: he’s going to be training under Emanuel Steward, one of the most famous and best in the business. In the past, he has worked with such legendary fighters as Kermit Cintron, Lennox Lewis, and Oscar De La Hoya; more recently, he has helped to train heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko. Boxing fans also probably know him for his color commentary on many HBO bouts.

Trainer issues were a major problem and distraction for Cotto in the run-up to his previous fight, a loss to pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquaio. So the leg up here, now that the bar mitzvah issue has been resolved, definitely goes to Foreman.

Earlier: Yuri Foreman Battles a Bar Mitzvah

Related: In Training [Tablet Magazine]

Marc Tracy is a staff writer at The New Republic, and was previously a staff writer at Tablet. He tweets @marcatracy.