By Hector Gonzalez: I’ve read a couple of new articles on BN24 on speculations that Mayweather would beat Pacquiao if and when the fight takes place. I thought that I’d write a counter argument since I don’t agree with these articles. If they fought Pacquiao would win and it really comes down to one thing and one thing only. In order to beat Pacquiao or at the very least be competitive against him there is only one tool that is not only an essential but a key ingredient in being victories, a granite chin. In order to be effective against Pacquiao the opponent will have to at the very least be able to be willing to engage from time to time.
Why Mayweather’s defense would not be a factor
Mayweathers defense is truly elusive, people contribute it to speed but it’s more than that. It’s really about an intuition that comes from ring IQ. It’s not that Mayweather can see a punch coming and then he moves quickly to get out of the way, it’s more about knowing based on what you know- know what your opponent is about to do before he does it. To Mayweather’s credit, his defense will work flawlessly against conventional fighters.. but then again, Pacquiao is not a conventional fighter. In fact many have speculated that the reason why Pacquiao is so dangerous is because he is so unpredictable. I think the perfect example is the first knock down of Pacquiao vs Cotto. The punch came from a right hook that was completely improvised. In other words Pacquiao was not even in a stance to throw a right hook yet not only did it land but it dropped Cotto. My point is that how to you dodge a punch that you do not expect your opponent to throw, that’s the story of Pacquiao, he throws punches that are not suppose to be thrown from those angles.
The combination punching of Pacquiao
People speculate that Amir Khan would be effective against Mayweather for two reason, speed and combination punching. I however do not believe Khan would be successful but I do believe that these speculators have the right idea about speed and combination punching, two things that Pacquiao is a master at. Mayweather would be successful at blocking one or two punches at a time but not 5 or 6 coming from unconventional angles.
Most times Mayweather has the advantage over fighters when fighting at the center of the ring, in the case of Pacquiao I do not believe that to be the case. In fact I would argue that that is where Pacquiao would be the most dangerous. Mayweather in my opinion would be mildly successful walking backwards where he would have two key punches from that angle, the straight right hand and the chopping right hook. Even with those punches I see Pacquiao walking through them only to land a combination of his own.
Morales and Marquez
Morales and Marquez are the only two fighters to ever be successful against Pacquiao. Both Morales and Marquez are top tier fighters from a very special class of boxing. In the case of both Morales and Marquez there is an element of counter intuitiveness contrary to the Mayweather school of boxing, the difference is that Morales and Marquez are not only power punchers with granite chins but they are willing to get hit. Mayweather in that regard is not up to the task.
I’ve talked to different people about this and have gotten many that agreed and many that disagreed but it’s my personal opinion that when Marquez knocked out Pacquiao with a powerful right hook he did it by being willing to go two rounds of back peddling, getting a broken nose for the opportunity to deliver that punch at just the right moment. Take for instance Shane Mosley who, is also a power puncher with the ability to hurt any fighter, stopped engaging once he felt Pacquiao’s power. The same could be said about Timothy Bradley who is a decent fighter, decent enough to have at least have been competitive against Pacquiao but fought like a fighter who simply was not willing to trade.
Conventional wisdom would suggest that Mayweather has the advantage over Pacquiao because he is a defensive wizard. However keep in mind that in order for the defensive stance to be effective against Paquiao, Mayweather would have dodging everything and countering everything for 12 rounds without a break. By the looks of it, if Maidana who is an extremely slow and predictable fighter could land on Mayweather than it’s without question that Pacquiao has the ability to not only land and drop Mayweather but has the ability to hurt Money May.
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