My thoughts on the fight….
That was entirely predictable. I accurately predicted the outcome and even the number of rounds Mayweather would win (8).
One of the things that make Mayweather great is his footwork, a product of a mensa level boxing IQ. He had the height and reach advantage and used that to his full advantage. In the center of the ring he kept Manny outside of punching range. When Manny took a step forward, Floyd would move back, keeping him always outside effective punching range. Manny did a good job of staying cautious through this process, but sometimes would lunge at his allusive target with a long distance straight left, which if it landed at all was at the apex of it’s length and was without power. Floyd would counter effectively or move away without harm.
When Manny pressed Floyd against the ropes, Mayweather handled it with ease. He would either land a check hook and spin out, tie Manny up, or go into a rope a dope turtle defense and allow Manny to tire himself with punches to his elbows, arms and shoulders. Manny does not have good power at this weight class. He was a killer at lightweight, not so much at welterweight. Thus Floyd was never in danger in the few times Floyd was in the pocket on the ropes.
A word about Mayweather: I’ve heard many people talk about how technical he is. Yes and No. He does some things that aren’t in the book. His straight right is terrible. He doesen’t put his weight behind it or involve his back and shoulders most of the time. He snaps it like a jab instead.
Is that bad? No…. I know a thing or two about punching. I trained with 2 top trainers in Tulsa. I fought in fight nights. Until recently I sparred on a frequent basis with the El Camino boxing team, at a few levels above my fighting weight because they lacked Heavyweights. I have read numerous books on the subject of punching technique and power (interestingly enough, the best I have ever read with the most good information was written in 1950!) so I feel I know the subject as well as anyone.
I can punch, and you can hear the difference when I would hit a heavy bag with my peers. Problem is you fall in love with hitting hard. If you throw every punch like a bomb, you run out of bombs. Worse still is experienced fighters will time your shots and move ever so slightly to block or slip your punches.
Mayweather doesen’t care about getting knockouts, or even hurting his opponent. He merely wants to score points and frustrate you so your work rate and punching output declines. His striaght right may be a “push” rather than a punch, but it gets their quickly, which is al he is looking for. Floyd has never “loaded up” in his life.
Regarding Packman, if Floyd’s footwork was brilliant, his was terrible. He was linear in his approach rather than taking angles. Worse still when he stepped towards Floyd he gave Floyd plenty of time to counter his step with a back step. The traditional approach to closing distance is a crouching “crow hop” which Manny never really did except a couple of times. Surprising for a fighter like him with the trainer he has. This leads me to believe Freddie Roach outsmarted himself, and the game plan all along was to surprise Floyd by counterpunching the counterpuncher. Dumb plan is all I can say.
That was entirely predictable. I accurately predicted the outcome and even the number of rounds Mayweather would win (8).
One of the things that make Mayweather great is his footwork, a product of a mensa level boxing IQ. He had the height and reach advantage and used that to his full advantage. In the center of the ring he kept Manny outside of punching range. When Manny took a step forward, Floyd would move back, keeping him always outside effective punching range. Manny did a good job of staying cautious through this process, but sometimes would lunge at his allusive target with a long distance straight left, which if it landed at all was at the apex of it’s length and was without power. Floyd would counter effectively or move away without harm.
When Manny pressed Floyd against the ropes, Mayweather handled it with ease. He would either land a check hook and spin out, tie Manny up, or go into a rope a dope turtle defense and allow Manny to tire himself with punches to his elbows, arms and shoulders. Manny does not have good power at this weight class. He was a killer at lightweight, not so much at welterweight. Thus Floyd was never in danger in the few times Floyd was in the pocket on the ropes.
A word about Mayweather: I’ve heard many people talk about how technical he is. Yes and No. He does some things that aren’t in the book. His straight right is terrible. He doesen’t put his weight behind it or involve his back and shoulders most of the time. He snaps it like a jab instead.
Is that bad? No…. I know a thing or two about punching. I trained with 2 top trainers in Tulsa. I fought in fight nights. Until recently I sparred on a frequent basis with the El Camino boxing team, at a few levels above my fighting weight because they lacked Heavyweights. I have read numerous books on the subject of punching technique and power (interestingly enough, the best I have ever read with the most good information was written in 1950!) so I feel I know the subject as well as anyone.
I can punch, and you can hear the difference when I would hit a heavy bag with my peers. Problem is you fall in love with hitting hard. If you throw every punch like a bomb, you run out of bombs. Worse still is experienced fighters will time your shots and move ever so slightly to block or slip your punches.
Mayweather doesen’t care about getting knockouts, or even hurting his opponent. He merely wants to score points and frustrate you so your work rate and punching output declines. His striaght right may be a “push” rather than a punch, but it gets their quickly, which is al he is looking for. Floyd has never “loaded up” in his life.
Regarding Packman, if Floyd’s footwork was brilliant, his was terrible. He was linear in his approach rather than taking angles. Worse still when he stepped towards Floyd he gave Floyd plenty of time to counter his step with a back step. The traditional approach to closing distance is a crouching “crow hop” which Manny never really did except a couple of times. Surprising for a fighter like him with the trainer he has. This leads me to believe Freddie Roach outsmarted himself, and the game plan all along was to surprise Floyd by counterpunching the counterpuncher. Dumb plan is all I can say.
