By Gav Duthie: How do you devise a game-plan for someone who has never tasted defeat. In 47 fights Floyd Mayweather Jr is still unbeaten and it is the job of Manny Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach to come up with a plan on how it can be done.
Okay, so Mayweather has never lost but there are plenty of examples of fights where he has had problems. The solution is to cause those problems from round one to round twelve. This piece looks at the fights to watch and the strategies Manny Pacquiao needs to implement in order to win.
Fights to watch
You have to dive into the archives to find some good examples.
The first Jose Luis Castillo fight in 2002
The early rounds of the Zab Judah fight in 2006
Oscar De La Hoya in 2007
Marcos Maidana 1 in 2014
I will attempt to look at what strategies were successful in unsettling him.
Punch straight (Zab Judah)
This is important in the middle of the ring and if you can corner him. Floyd uses his footwork to step away from punches and a high guard. The only small gap is between the gloves. In the early rounds Judah landed with lots of success through the Mayweather guard. Pacquiao can take lots from the Judah fight as he is also a southpaw with fast hands. Pacquiao’s best shots have always been the straight 1-2. He just needs to make sure he mixes it up because Marquez was always looking for it to counter with the left hook.
Body Shots (De La Hoya, Castillo)
Actually all four opponents had success to the body but particularly the two above. Mayweather is difficult to get against the ropes but even when you do he is a nightmare to pin down. The right hands bounce off his shoulder, he spins the hooks and throws uppercuts to the body. Both De La Hoya and Castillo threw three or four body shots before going upstairs. If you can land to the body it may drop his guard enough to get a good shot in upstairs.
Make him miss and counter (Judah, Castillo)
When analyzing Muhammad Ali’s win over George Foreman one expert said the most arrogant thing a fighter can do is throw straight right hands instead of jabs. You are basically saying to your opponent you are to slow to see this coming and I can do what I want. Mayweather often throws a straight right hand then spins to his right to use his angles. Castillo often waited for the right then charged him down. Judah leaned back when Mayweather leaned forward, countered and should have scored a knockdown.
The overhand right (Maidana)
So for Pacquiao being a southpaw it would be an overhand left but the basic principles still apply. Mayweather blocks so many punches with the shoulder. It takes the sting out and if it connects it only glances. Maidana threw lots of looping overhand rights which made the shoulder defense redundant as the punches were coming down on him and carried all of their power.
Use Feints (Judah)
Pacquiao is good at this when looking for openings. It is no surprise that Floyd is using Judah as a sparring partner. Judah used jab feints to switch between body and head with straight and successful left hands.
Start fast but Stay Busy (Castillo, Maidana)
It is important to never let Mayweather get into a rhythm. If you can start fast and throw a lot Mayweather often spends a couple of rounds to figure out your style. He may let you take a round or two but if you drop the pace his confidence can dominate you. Canelo was probably the easiest fight in recent years because he was looking for openings. You need to stay busy because if you are not punching Mayweather will be. Castillo kept the pressure up for 12 and Maidana lost the first fight because he dropped the pace in the last 3 rounds.
Change Tactics (De La Hoya)
After much of the beginning of the fight in the centre of the ring De La Hoya abandoned the jab to go on the attack. He targeted the body as the best way for success. He fought in bursts as he often did when he was able to cut of the ring.
Use angles
Nobody has really been hugely successful with this. Ironically Pacquiao’s most successful attacks on Marquez was in the fourth fight because he kept stepping to his left to avoid left hooks. Ironically he didn’t pay much attention to the right hand that knocked him out. Mayweather doesn’t knock many out these days but Pacquiao would be one of his smallest opponents in a long time and if he charges forward in straight lines Floyd could knock him out.
Pacquiao 2009-2015
There is no doubt Pacquiao is not the same fighter who was knocking out the likes of Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto. He hasn’t stopped anyone for a few years now but it has probably forced him to be a more rounded boxer. I was impressed with the angles he used against Rios and the way he turned round the Bradley rematch after a good early start. He was rarely hit against Algieri and had more structure to his attacks. If I was a betting man my money would be on Mayweather but I think Pacquiao and Roach have the tools to win but executing them will be a different story.
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