By Brian H: How ironic. The fact that an undefeated boxer, with a record of 46 Wins, 0 losses, and 0 draws doesn’t have the utmost respect from any & every viewer of the sport of boxing. 18 years at the top of a sport that he has given some of the best highlights of defense, counter-punching ability, technical savvy, Neo-like speed, flawless footwork and ring generalship. Yet still, the naysayers doubt his legacy.
Even after the fame, millions of dollars, exotic women, shameless groupies, flashy cars, mansions, and world traveling, Floyd still lives by one simple motto – “Hard Work and Dedication”. Think about that. I mean, there are times that I get lazy and complacent after getting $20, a bag of Cheetos and having someone recognize me in the grocery store. Talk about focus and true belief in being T.B.E. That’s a victory in itself. But no matter what this ring genius does, his haters try to steal his glory. They say he cherry-picks his opponents. An opponent who, literally, the fight before was a “monster”, a “killer”, or the “next superstar of boxing”.. but yet, when Floyd fights them, they always try to find a reason why “Floyd” Mayweather Jr. is scamming the system.
Let’s break this down a little bit ( in no particular order ). And I won’t get too deep, but just a sampling of what I mean. Ricky Hatton, at the time of their fight, was an undefeated / confident boxer with an aggressive style. He had a country behind him, that brought every damn instrument across the pond to cheer on their gladiator in the Las Vegas Coliseum. Long story short, Floyd Mayweather disposed of him, quieted the drunken band, and changed the landscape of Ricky Hatton’s career forever.
Next up, Miguel Cotto. Now, it baffles me when people say that Mayweather Jr. Cherry picked Cotto. It baffles me even more when people claim he “ran” the entire fight. He actually did the exact opposite. He stated before and after that fight, on numerous occasions, that he would stand and fight with Cotto. This is exactly what he did in the ring, and we saw a bloody-nosed Mayweather taking some big shots from a man that is naturally bigger than him at a weight in which Cotto was more comfortable at (154). And still, Floyd had the cleaner shots, higher accuracy, and was counter-punching the hell out of Cotto all while having his back against the ropes. This was a battle, but clearly Mayweather won the fight, even stunning Cotto in the later rounds with a couple of big uppercuts. After the fight, people questioned Mayweather’s legs. Claiming that the superstar was showing signs of slippage and old age. Yet once again, he said he would stand and fight toe-to-toe.
Fast-forward to Saul “Canelo” Alvarez vs. Mayweather Jr… One of the, if not the biggest fights in boxing history in terms of PPV and Gate sales. Alvarez is a fighter that the world of boxing and Mexican patriots defined as the annointed solver of the ever elusive “May-vinci Code”. This man was 13 years his junior, 20 lbs heavier, undefeated, confident, and hungry for that Number 1 spot. And lets not forget, Canelo has amazing technical ability, great defense, and was coming off such victories as Josesito Lopez, Sugar Shane Mosley and Austin Trout. Now, to be honest, I don’t remember Mayweather getting touched in that fight. He out boxed this kid as if he wasn’t even in the ring with him. The haters claimed he “ran” the entire fight, but we all know the truth. It was a sad day for Mexico.
Whoa, speaking of out boxing a great boxer, I almost forgot what Mayweather did to Juan Manuel Marquez – another Mexican fighter. He made Marquez look lost, confused, and defeated. This was coming after Floyd’s nearly 2 year retirement / time off. That fight has some of the greatest highlights that I’ve ever seen. His counter punches in that fight look like it’s off the set of a Martial Arts movie. If you haven’t seen it, go check it out…In the words of Mayweather “I made him look like a father fighting against his infant son”.
Lastly, I want to mention his defeat, or shall I say defeats over Oscar De La Hoya. Oscar has literally piggy-backed about 8 fighters against Floyd. I don’t know if it’s out of jealousy, hatred, or what.. but Oscar wants to see Floyd fall. Besides beating Oscar, Floyd has trampled every single person that Golden Boy has put in front of him. How many times must someone tell you that they will not lose and prove it, before it becomes a fact and not just an “arrogant thing to say”?
In the end, I stopped questioning Mayweather after his win over Canelo Alvarez. I said to myself that he has “Nothing else to prove to me”. At this point, he’s just putting the final brush strokes onto his masterpiece legacy. Any real fan of boxing should show respect to this all-time great, because he has shown us things in the ring that we probably won’t see for a long time, if ever again. I heard a quote about Mayweather a few years back, and I believe it strikes the essence of his boxing greatness. It went a little something like “What makes Mayweather great is the fact that while other fighters are thinking of their next move in the ring, Mayweather doesn’t think, he just does”. As a man that has been wearing boxing gloves since he was a baby & witnessing a high-level of boxing his entire life, there is only one natural conclusion. Boxing is as engrained into his mind and body as breathing, walking or blinking. How do you beat that? The moment you step in the ring, he’s already won.. and yet, he never seems to win.
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