The Fight of the Century: MAYWEATHER-PACQUIAO PREVIEW

Floyd Mayweather meets Manny Pacquiao at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on Sunday (EST time) in the ‘Fight of the Century’, with the mantle of the best fighter on the planet up for grabs.

Personal vendettas, legal troubles, contractual disputes and the sizeable ego’s of all involved have been overcome. The pair will finally go toe to toe in front of the world.

I’ve written over 30 articles on this fight over the journey and now that it is finally here it’s hard to find something that hasn’t already been said.

All along I’ve tipped a Mayweather victory and I will not waiver from that ahead of the fight. I just believe he is a superior fighter.

He’s yet to taste defeat in 47 fights and he has been in there with the very best.

His resume reads like a list of a Hall of Fame class. Corrales, Gatti, Judah, De La Hoya, Hatton, Marquez, Mosley, Cotto, Alvarez. It is some record.  

Many fighters have been touted as the one to stop ‘Money’ Mayweather, but up until now no one has managed to find a way. It’s hard to find a Mayweather fight in recent years that wasn’t mostly one sided, with a split decision win over Oscar De La Hoya the only exception. 

Cotto and Maidana put him under pressure to an extent, but his victories over Hatton, Marquez, Mosley and Alvarez were comprehensive.

    

Some say his biggest weakness is against pressure fighters, others say he struggles with southpaws.  Well, Manny Pacquiao is both, but it doesn’t guarantee him victory.

Pacquiao is expected to bring an all action style. But so did Cotto, Marquez and Alvarez. Mayweather was too slick for all of them.

Mayweather recently defeated Marcos Maidana, a relentlessly come forward fighter, often at his detriment.  Maidana certainly brought the pressure, but Mayweather never lost his composure. He let rounds slip, and fell behind on the scorecard, but as soon as Maidana tired, he picked him to pieces.

Whilst Mayweather is coming off back to back wins over Maidana, Pacquiao is coming off a one sided win over Chris Algieri. So one sided that Pacquiao scored six knockdowns over the 12 rounds. 

He looked very good, but was it really a test.

Pacquiao has knock out power in both hands and we’ve seen him flick the switch on some of the sport’s biggest names. Knockout is his best chance of victory, but he needs to be careful himself. 

Whilst Mayweather is undefeated, Pacquiao has lost three times in his career. The Filipino suffered back to back losses in 2012, which shows there are chinks in his armour.

He loves to let his hands go, but as a result he can be a little reckless. We saw him knocked out at the hands of Juan Manuel Marquez in that fashion. Mayweather doesn’t regularly end a fight early, but he’ll latch onto even the slightest opening. Pacquiao needs to pick his moments and establish his jab before looking for the big shots.

It’s Pacquiao’s fights with Marquez that are the most telling and give us the best indication of what can trouble the Filipino. The pair has met four times across their careers, the fights almost all close and controversial decisions.

Marquez has power and uses angles well, he gives as good as he gets, and has shown us that Pacquiao can struggle when he is not able to force the pressure as he likes and when beaten to the punch.

Mayweather has never been knocked out in his 47 fight career, and has only ever been knocked down on one occasion, a flash knockdown against Carlos Hernandez back in 2001. It was the only round Mayweather lost that night.

In more recent times, we’ve seen him rocked by Shane Mosley in the opening round of their fight in 2010. This time, Mayweather didn’t go down, but similarly he won ever ensuing round of the fight.

Knockout may be Pacquiao’s best method of victory, and he is certainly capable, but finding Mayweather’s chin is another story entirely.    

I expect Mayweather to fight, as he normally does, on the outside. He’ll use his defensive skills to keep the Filipino at range and counter punch. He won’t risk coming forward and into the clutches of Pacquiao.   

Mayweather must match the intensity of Pacquiao early. Pacquiao likes to dictate and Mayweather can’t allow that to happen right off the bat. Mayweather can’t start slow like he did in the first fight with Maidana. He was caught behind early on the scorecards and only managed to wrestle control back in the back end of the fight. Pacquiao won’t afford him the same luxury.

Mayweather must bank rounds early and not let it slip. He finishes well and always comes homes stronger in the final rounds. On the flip side Pacquiao will look to start fast and seize control. He'll look for a big punch early. 

If he wins the early rounds that will force Mayweather to chance his arm as the fight progresses. This is exactly what the Filipino wants. It means Floyd has to let his hands go and press the fight and that brings a knockout into the equation.

This could be a fight for the ages and I hope it lives up to the hype. Styles make fights and this one will hopefully be a fight we remember for a long time.

Pacquiao is the biggest test Mayweather has had in his career. But I think its a test he passes, just. 

PREDICTION: MAYWEATHER by decision