Is Mayweather Making a Mistake By Fighting Marquez?
May 8th, 2009
By Jim Dower: I got to hand it to Floyd Mayweather Jr. (39-0, 25 KOs) for picking such a difficult fight after nearly two years away from boxing. Not many fighters would have taken an opponent nearly as dangerous as Juan Manuel Marquez (50-4-1. 37 KOs) after such a long layoff from the sport. However, I think Mayweather, 32, is going on belief that he hasn’t lost anything since stopping Ricky Hatton in the 10th round in December 2007.
I’ve seen both of the Marquez-Pacquiao fights, and I have to agree with the critics of the decision. Marquez appeared to win both of the bouts and should have been given the victory.
Mayweather was nothing special in his fight with Oscar De La Hoya two years ago in May 2005, losing many of the first six rounds of the bout and needing to come back in the 2nd half of the bout to pick up the narrow 12-round split decision win. It was a fight that was up for grabs going into the last two rounds, but De La Hoya, like always, ran out of gas in the late rounds and ended up losing the fight.
Had De La Hoya been able to fight hard for the remaining two rounds, he would have beaten Mayweather. In Mayweather’s fight with Ricky Hatton, Mayweather didn’t look all that good in the first six rounds, and was getting hit by Hatton on a fairly regular basis. However, the referee began to prevent Hatton from working in close on the inside, which seemed to turn the fight around for Mayweather as he was able to pot shot Hatton from the 6th to the 10th.
Again, this was another bout in which Mayweather looked very beatable and hardly the fighter that many people had previously been hyping as the best fighter in the sport.
Now fast forward two years with Mayweather now coming off a long layoff after making a ton of money in his fights with De La Hoya, Hatton and in a professional wrestling match. Mayweather has been idle all this time, spending money and enjoying his wealth without having to work hard in training like Marquez has had to do.
I suppose Mayweather is thinking that he’ll be in the same condition he was when he fought Hatton and De La Hoya, but I don’t think that’s possible anymore. Any time a fighter takes off that much time away from the ring, the body changes and the cardiovascular system takes a big hit.
Mayweather’s entire game is based on hand speed, ring movement and his ability to fight hard in the latter half of his fights. If those skills have been eroded through age and inactivity, the logical conclusion is that Mayweather won’t be the same fighter he was before he left two years ago.
For that kind of a layoff, Mayweather should realistically fight two or three tune-up bouts, but even then you can’t expect him to be the same fighter he was. I respect Mayweather for what he’s doing by taking the fight with Marquez, but I think he’s stupid for doing it.
This may well backfire on Mayweather with Marquez outworking him and scoring the more pin point shots in the 2nd half of the fight to get the win.
Tags: 29 Responses to “Is Mayweather Making a Mistake By Fighting Marquez?”
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yah i agree with yosh, this will be a very boring fight.. il only be watching to see wholl be KO 1st with superior running n ducking tchniques that theyll b training 4 in the next 8 weeks.. the crowd would only wish that like in professional wrestling pacquiao will come out of the crowd n KO them both 1 at a time.. that would b worth their money.. nyahaha!!
the writer’s opinion holds water but i still believe that mayweather will win over marquez, which is not quite good for pq specially now that alibis of any short are being used as an excuse for one’s defeat. if the fight between mayweather and pacman will go through it would be ideal to have everything in proper perspective. the idea that mayweather in this early stage of his comeback has not yet regained 100% of his form when quite boxing will surely be made as an excuse for losing to pacman, which i believe very possible because the pacman you see today is not the same pacman you saw few years ago. the pacman today is too much versatile and dangerous than when marguez encountered him. however if marquez wins the fight over mayweather, the better. the lingering doubts of who are really the best p4p will be settled.
hell yeah….
mayweather thinks this is just a walk in the park fight with jmm, i hope jmm knock him out…
I think this fight needs to happen. The reason being is that these 2 guys have always been elite fighters. They are great counterpunchers and great tacticians. They are not known for their power punches but are well known for adapting to their environment and opponents. That’s why it takes a while for these two to knock out or defeat quality opponents. It took Marquez nine rounds to take out Diaz and 10 rounds for Mayweather to take out Hatton. Against their toughest opponents, their bouts went to decisions. Granted that Marquez has lost a few fights, it seems that Mayweather has the advantage. Along with the weight, Mayweather would seem to be a great favorite and Marquez a huge underdog. That’s why this fight needs to happen. This will be a fight between a fighter who loves to feed off being the best and a fighter who is fueled by being the underdog. Just look back at the fight between Marquez and Pacquiao. Marquez adapted to Pacquiao quickly. The only reason Pacquiao won, in my opinion, is that after their first fight, the judges wanted Marquez to put Pacquiao down in order to win. Since it was formally announced that there was an error on part of the judge, it seemed that Marquez had to knock him down instead of doing what he did in the first fight, which was just to counterpunch.
This fight will be very interesting. I can’t wait to see who adapts to their opponents first. I’d like to see who the better counterpuncher is. I see this fight as 50/50. Yes, I know that Mayweather is the favorite but Mayweather has never fought anyone like Pacquiao. De la Hoya or Castillo may have been his toughest opponents. No matter what excuse he makes, De la Hoya has never been as elite as Pacquiao. In all his major fights, De la Hoya has lost. He has never defeated an elite fighter. Chavez was an elite fighter but not at the time they fought. It’s very much like his fight with Pacquiao. But at their prime, it’s obvious that Chavez and Pacquiao would take out De la Hoya at his prime. So, Marquez facing Pacquiao twice, knocking out Diaz, making Casamayor look like a fool, and having Mayweather out for a couple of years will make this bout just about even for me. I know it sounds like a bunch of crap, but throughout his career, Marquez has never been known to be washed-up or given up on.
i have to disagree with your comments about mayweathers physical condition jim, as he hasn’t actually stopped training since he retired, which is just one of the reasons why there were so many rumors floating about that he would soon be making his comeback. however, it’s a fact that he will have a fair amount of ring rust because no amount of sparing can stop that from setting in.
on the marguez vs pac-man, i have it one a piece.
my prediction on the mayweather vs marguez fight? mayweather by KO. that depends if the fight is a welter though, because i really can’t see marquez jumping two weight divisons and remaining as effective as he is today.
i think marquez is an outstanding fighter but mayweather is an exceptional one,i think this fight has been made for floyd to send manny a message by winning well but i,d be careful cos choosing someone of marquezs calibre to use as a warm up is bold and dangerous. as for all the people saying he should of fought margerito and cotto,moseley and all be honest floyd would of done margarito quicker than shane ,also cotto would not be good enough look at the urkal fight.
Announcement: mayweather vs marquez, mayweather is back.
WHEN: July 18 2009
WHERE:Las Vegas Nevada
WHY:
Its going to historical fight, may be the most
boring Fight of the decade
Please Bring your own Pillow, in case of emergency , this going to be a long and boring 12 rounds.
I wonder how these two will hit each other, one is running away and one is ducking
I atcually agree with Adam
UD for the pretty girl.
“You might as well rename him Fraud Mayweather, Jr.”.
Coward, Alligator Mouth Mayweather.
Maybe he picks Marquez cos if ever he beat JMM he can have the excuse in not fighting PACQUIAO and to get again the attention of the media that he is still the P4P King. Or he wants to use this fight so as if ever he beat the smaller and older guy he could say that he is the best, leading to the fight with Manny and again ask for the lion share of all the Money that can be generated.
PBF is the epitome of JUDAS….
It’s all for show. On paper it looks like this is a risky fight for Floyd but he’s fighting someone who has to come up TWO WEIGHTS ABOVE HIS NATURAL DIVISION.
In the first Pac-Marquez bout the judge made a mistake on the scorecards and scored it a 10-7 round to Paquaio. IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN 10-6 as Manny knocked him down 3 TIMES!
This would have given Manny the win.
I truly believe Manny won both fights, although Marquez put up a GOOD fight it doesn’t mean he won.
Mayweather is much bigger than Marquez and they shouldn’t really be sharing the same ring. All the weight hopping confuses people with simple minds.
PBF is walking into a sand dune of MARQUEZ… I BET HE WILL REGRET IT…
i watched how mayweather fights and his undoubtly great, his a very intelligent boxer with speed and power.. im not interested in his match with JMM although both fighters are good, because either way, any time and anywhere when they stepped in the ring with MANNY PACQUIAO, they will be murdered. haha! “pound for pound king”
PBF took some pretty good punches from Hatton, JMM is a much better boxer than Hatton basing on their fights with the Pacman. Go figure.
Mayweather is a great boxer and thrives off of defense. His shoulder rolling and movement have kept him from getting hit squarely. Marquez is also a great fighter. The problem with this fight is that Marquez is a naturally smaller fighter. The catch weight will be 143, which favors Mayweather. He always comes in good physical condition and it will be easier for him to be defensive at 143 than it will for Marquez to bring any power up to 143 from 135. Second, Marquez is most effective as a counter puncher. That is also Mayweather’s game. With a 1 inch height advantage and a 5 inch reach advantage I see this in Mayweather’s favor. Marquez will have to be a robot to beat Mayweather, which is possible given his talent, but make no mistake, Mayweather is a boxer/businessman not a fighter. I can’t give him the utmost respect until I see him fight a truly dangerous fighter who could beat him on a combination of smarts, speed, tactics, where Mayweather won’t really be able to and hurt him, like Mosely or on speed, power, physical attributes, and volume punching, namely Paul Williams. I don’t see those fights happening because Mayweather is risk averse.
I think Bob Arum said Pac should be the one getting 65% after Floyd asked for it first. I think Bob Aruns’ demand’s are inflated as well. They should just split it 50/50 as Pacs fights are more exciting, but I think Floyd will be favored, unless he has a bad showing against Marquez. However the Marquez fight shapes up, will be an indicator of how the split should be. If Floyd demolishes him like Pac did Hatton, then he probably will be entitled to a higher percentage. But if not, then Pac will be the one holding the cards.
Juan Manuel Marquez 2 win
Hey Mark Johnson and Becks.You call Mayweather a coward and a pu$$y for fighting Marquez?You also say he should fight somebody his own size.Thats funny sht right there.Mayweather has dodged nobody and is one of the best in the world.Wasn’t Rick Hatton supposed to be to big and strong for Pacquaio?And look what happened their.He got pushed and beat all over the ring.Marquez isn’t worried about being to small.And besides,if they both weight in at 135,doesnt that mean their both 135 pounds?Sit back and enjoy a great boxing match.This 1 won’t be over in 2 because these 2 have talent and know how to box.But I still think my boy Mayweather will prevail with a UD.
I read some where that it is infact Arum who said the Pac Man wouldn’t fight PBF for less then 60 – 65%! Basically, if and when PBF beats an ageing and rapidly slowing (watch Diaz fight properly) Marquez, then they will both be bringing the same to the table. How about 47.5 – 47.5, last 5 % to the winner?!?!?!?
I think Mayweather thinks this is going to be an easy fight and I’m going to agree with him. JMM is great, don’t get me wrong, but the fact that he’s jumping two weight divisions, to fight Mayweather who’s in his prime is ridiculous. If Baby Bull Diaz had ANY type of punching power, JMM would have been knocked out, but he didn’t and Marquez always is a great adjuster, which is how he managed to pull out an amazing win. But can you imagine if PBF was giving JMM those shots in the early going. I don’t like PBF because I think he ducks people he thinks can beat him, and I don’t like JMM for whining for the past 15 months about Pac, but it’s going to be a hell of a fight. I’m rooting for both to beat the crap out of each other. BTW, I’m already reading rumors about Floyd demanding 60% in a fight with Pac…he’s already pricing himself out already so no one think’s hes avoiding Pac. I’d do the same thing after seeing what Pac did to Hatton though.
First of all,Mayweather dominated Dela hoya in their fight,it waz not even close and still 2 dis day,i dont know how the hell dat fight waz decided as a split-decision win 4 Mayweather,i scored it 117-111 for Mayweather,i def think Marquez will have his moments in his fight wit Floyd,but when its all said and done Floyd will have his hands raised
i dont think we will see a difference in floyd, Hes an Athele. He will be as good as when he left (as much as i hate to say it) Fight marquez a mistake?… maybe. But hes still a smaller fighter. I will look forward to the fight but for people tuning in to see a different floyd and marquez to take advantage, not gonna happen.
Still wanting to see Floyd vs Cotto. Hopefully 2009 will bring it
mike ur just a manny lover u must be from d phillipines, the first might maybe manny won but d second was all marquez, and yes fm jr has made a huge mistake, i think we will be seeing manny vs cotto, although not too appealing
Mayweather fight only he knows he can beat, he diddnt fight he’s match like Cotto,Mosley,Margarito..
In fighting marquez, He thinks only money,because we know that Mayweather is a money man…
But i disagree with you that many people thinks that Marquez won thwe fight in there 2 meetings with Pacquiao..
in ther 1st meeting pacquiao dominated all most all of the rounds especially the 1st round 3 knockdown in pacquiao’s hand in that situation pacquiao almost dominated 4 rounds..
and in there 2nd match when i see the fight.. even marquez almost have scored a counter punch..pacquiao dominated again in his solid punch and in the 3rd round knockdown…
why did you say that it’s marquez..who win in that fight?
for my opinion..pacquiao win in Featherweight crown Fight with Marquez with 1 judges told that he have a mistake scoring that bout to a draw..
but obviously pacquiao is the winner on that fight..
So for me Manny Pacquiao is a 7th time World Champion in the World, Beating Marquez in there first Match resulting to draw…
ugh … i actually think mayweather is a bit of a coward for choosing to fight marquez … come on … marquez wasn t particularly large at 135!?
What weight is the fight being at seeing as Mayweather last fought @ welter and Marquez @ lightweight?
it easily could be a big mistake…this is juan manuel marquez for christ sake!
Mayweather is the best in the world.He’s in his prime and should not have stopped boxing.Marquez is no joke and I think Floyd should have taken a warm up fight before this.Now that the overhyped Ricky Hatton is out of the picture and we don’t have to worry about watching him gettin KTFO on PPV’s anymore.We can watch the true talent duke it out in the likes of Mayweather,Marquez,Pacquaio,Mosley and Cotto.