The Mayweather Blueprint

Floyd Mayweather Jr. is arguably one of the greatest fighters in recent memory. It used to be that Floyd rarely had a glove laid on him and like Roy Jones Jr in his prime seemed to rarely even lose a round. Floyd is able to make great fighters look like your average run of the mill sparring partners. As of late it seems as if he is slipping a bit. He has become less mobile, and in my opinion a lot more exciting as he gives fighters more chances. However, his defense is so good that he can afford to stand directly in front of his opponents and still make them miss, even if they land they slide off his patented philly defense. With all that being said, it still seems as if he is invincible. He is always in shape, despite his seemingly crazy lifestyle and outside of the ring antics. Is there a way to beat the great "money" Mayweather? I think there is and I plan on trying to demonstrate the weakness in this alltime great. Of course this is a lot easier said, or typed, then actually done. For this blueprint to be executed would take someone just as great as Mayweather to pull off.

There are a couple of ways which I think would work, both are equally difficult but in vastly different ways.

Blueprint #1 - The Punch With
Notice from the picture above that when Mayweather punches while coming forward that his chin is completely exposed. Floyd does not generally tuck in his chin when he is throwing these types of offensive punches. When he is in defensive mode looking to counter it is pretty well protected. I think this is the mistake fighters make is that they either try to overpower Mayweather and out will him, and when this inevitably fails, they stand on the outside and get picked apart. If you have the speed and the technique then you should stand on the outside and have Mayweather come to you and punch with him. So when Floyd throws a right hand, you throw your left at the same time and vice versa. Floyd is not a devastating puncher so if you have a good chin this will work, and it helps if you can punch a bit too. Floyd has been hurt from this very tactic, despite that he does seem to have a very good chin so I doubt one punch will do it unless he does not see it. This tactic would take a highly skilled fighter with precision timing and hand speed equal to or better than Floyd. It might work if you have quick enough hands and not blinding speed.

Here is another example of Mayweather coming forward punching. Notice that his left hand, his lead hand, is down while throwing the right hand. His chin is exposed and there to be hit, however, because of his unbelievable hand speed he has been able to get away with it. As noted previously, Floyd has been much more stationary in recent fights and his amazing footwork enabled him to throw these kind of shots and get the hell out of the way. Since he is more stationary this tactic would be much easier to pull off.

Here is yet another example of Floyd throwing the right hand with his left hand below his chin and his chin is completely exposed. To pull this off you would need unbelievable timing but punching with Floyd would be the best chance for someone with skill and power. This is most definetly a weakness that I am not at all surprised has not been corrected. His team seems to buy into this idea that Floyd is indestructible and this has blinded them to some of his faults, which are certainly minimal. However, this flaw is a rather big one and the right person could capitalize on.

Blueprint #2 - Pure Pressure
This one requires and unbelievable amount of stamina and punch resistance, pure pressure. In the past fighters have used pressure on Floyd but it often seemed that either the pressure was reckless, like Jesus Chavez, or that their conditioning did not hold up. I could imagine a fighter like James Kirkland employing this method with great success, he is in shape, hits hard, and is not easy to discourage. The key to this, other than supreme conditioning, is bodywork. One thing Floyd offers is his body. If the pressure is done wisely and the body is worked consistently, while utilizing good head movement and a solid chin, it could work. However, this would also take a special kind of fighter because many have tried this and all have failed. Again, this would take a fighter just as great as Mayweather to pull off as it seems unlikely to ever work. That being said, Floyd has clearly slowed down a bit and, as stated earlier, is far more stationary and willing to lay on the ropes and counter. If someone is in good enough shape and hits hard enough, they could possibly pull it off.

The other major obstacle is Floyd's defense. He has one of the best defenses in boxing by far. It is nearly impossible to get a clean shot in on his face while he is in his philly shell defense and this is why it is smart to focus on the body with the hard shots because you will no doubt land them, but you waste your energy trying to land a knockout blow on his face. So the idea is to throw to his head, but not to throw hard shots, save them for the body. Fling out a good jab or two, maybe even a hook or two, but go right back down to the body. I don't care who you are, body work pays off and if he is going to give it to you that easily, then take it, put your money in the bank. If it does not stop him it will at least slow him down in the later rounds.

The one thing that both blueprints need is a good solid jab. Oscar De La Hoya had some success with the jab when he fought Floyd, but mysteriously abandoned it midway through the fight. There are many of the young fighters out there who have abandoned the jab entirely, opting for the one punch knockout wining punches. A good hard jab should be key in any game plan, and in both of these it is a necessity, moreso in blueprint #2 than #1. #1 you are working off what Floyd gives you, looking to catch him when he punches.

I truly hope, for the sake of boxing, that someone special comes along who is not afraid of Floyd and does not buy into the hype, like so many Roy Jones Jr. fighters did. No fighter is invincible, as Marquez finally proved against Pacquiao. Study the tapes and practice the gameplan.



 

Garcia vs Salido Prediction

Tomorrow night we get to see just how good Mikey Garcia is. So far he has shown that he is a sound technician with some pop in his punch. Tomorrow we are certain to find out if he has the goods as Salido will certainly find that out if he does not. This looks to be a high action fight with Salido looking to continue his reign and Garcia looking to prove himself to be one of the top dogs in the sport.

What should happen
Its hard to say really but I am gonna say that Garcia is as good as we think he is and soundly outpoints Salido. I will venture further to say that he will slowly break Salido down then commence the beating of a lifetime midway through the bout and eventually stop Salido in brutal fashion. Garcia needs, and probably wants, to make a statement and brutalizing Salido would be quite the statement. Salido is a hard nosed veteran and a tough nut to crack but he certainly is crackable. Garcia is technically superior and probably won't take many risks early. I look for him to slowly break Salido down and eventually stop him.

What could happen
Well, just about anything. Salido is tough and his pressure could cause problems for Garcia like it did Juanma, in fact this is his only chance at beating Garcia. He has to start early with the pressure and body work if he has any hope in this fight. It would be wise for him to try and rough Garcia up a bit, try and get him off his game. Since Garcia has less experience Salido needs to try and do this to see if this kid has the mental makeup of a fighter, if Garcia does then Salido is most likely screwed. Garcia could get ahead of himself in trying to make a statement and get drawn into a war which is where Salido has his best chance.

What I think will happen
I think Garcia punishes Salido for however long it lasts. Salido will certainly make a fight out of it, or at the very least try and make a fight of it. I think this is Garcias coming out party and I think it will be brutal.

Mayweather vs. Guerrero Prediction

On May 4 2013 Robert "The Ghost" Guerrero takes on pound for pound king Floyd "Money" Mayweather for the WBC Welterweight title. Not many give Guerrero much of a chance in this fight and I can understand why. Mayweather has beaten everyone he has ever faced and has fought at such a high level for such a long time that it is inconceivable to bet against him. Guerrero has impressed us all in recent fights, namely in moving up from lightweight to welterweight and stomping Andre Berto in a brutal 12 round beatdown.

On the May
Mayweather has always done his business and there is something to be said for that, granted there are many of his fights that are boring or too one sided. As of late I have noticed a few things that may give the Ghost an edge in this fight. Floyd has certainly aged as a fighter, he is not nearly as light on his feet and has been in tougher and tougher fights. He is still unbelievable despite this fact but he struggled early against the faded Shane Mosley, even getting rocked a few times early. Against Cotto, who is believed to be well past his prime after beatings by Margarito and Pacquiao, and many other hard fights, Mayweather struggled. Granted, he outpointed Cotto but often times Cotto was able to have his way and landed more punches on Mayweather than anyone that I can recall. To put it simply, Mayweather has become more stationary. This fact has made him far more exciting than previously, but it makes him an easy target. I think Mayweather, while still great, is on the dark side of his career and his skills have faded ever so slightly.

On the Ghost
Guerrero has come a long way in the last few years. Recently he moved up to welterweight, from lightweight, and out pointed hard punching but relatively unknown Selcuk Aydin. After that he fought Andre Berto, a fight many did not think Guerrero could win, let alone be competitive. The result? Guerrero manhandled Berto for 12 rounds. Thats not to say Berto did not have his moments, because he did, landing some vicious inside punches. To Guerrero's credit, he took them and never once seemed to be fazed in the slightest. Another thing that shocked even me was Guerrero's ability to sustain such a frantic pace throughout the fight. All that being said, Berto is no Mayweather and Guerrero will have his hands full come May.

What should happen
It should be a high action fight with Guerrero looking to make his mark early and Mayweather most likely looking to counter. Guerrero is going to make Mayweather earn every penny. It would be wise for Guerrero to fight Floyd like he fought Berto, rough. Make it a street fight, and most likely he will. Despite that, Floyd should fight through it and win a close but exciting fight.

What could happen
I alluded to the fact that I think Mayweather is on the downside of his career and his skills faded slightly. It is possible that Guerrero is catching Mayweather at the perfect time in his career to pull off the upset. It won't be easy, Guerrero is going to have to take some firepower to get there, but he is a determined man that has a good chin and a good punch. Judging by Mayweathers last fight against Cotto it is a very real possibility that Guerrero surprises us all, Floyd especially, and beats him up for twelve rounds. If Guerrero fights his fight, an upset is a very real possibility.

What I think will happen
As much as I love Guerrero and want him to win as this outcome would likely be better for the boxing game, I am not sure it is going to happen. Part of me says he will upset Mayweather, the other says there is no way. What I do think is that this will be a great fight but I think Mayweather will most likely win the fight.

Bernard Hopkins, Greatest of All Time?

It sometimes seems that when we have a great thing in front of us, it is not appreciated until its not there anymore. For a long time I did not like Hopkins, in fact I often rooted against him. However in recent years I have become a big fan. Watching him defy all the odds and completely dominate these younger guys, even in losing he is competitive to the point of at least making the fight close.  At 48 he is set to fight the young strong bull in Tavoris Cloud, should he beat Cloud to win the IBF strap, I think it would be time to consider him one of the greatest fighters of all time. First, there is his record 20 defenses of the middleweight title over a 10 year period. Then of course the smack down he put on Tarver, who was supposed to retire Hopkins. The beat down he put on Pavlik, who was supposed beat up the old man and move on to bigger and better things. Then Jean Pascal whom he so thoroughly dominated that he was doing push ups in between rounds.

Hopkins has already cemented a legacy that will last for a very long time but the fact that he keeps going and at 48 is still able to beat, let alone compete, with these younger, stronger, and faster guys is absolutely astonishing. Generally when a fighter continues to fight at this age, we watch with a heavy heart but we watch, if we watch at all, in the hopes that something happens, that he lands a big shot. That happened with Foreman against Michael Moorer, but that is a rarity. Even more rare is that a guy like Hopkins doesn't need to land that one big shot because he can rely on his boxing skills! Yes, at 48 the man has the legs of a 30 year old. His stamina is still unbelievable and it makes you wonder, is he lying about his age?

Come March 9th, I expect Hopkins to do it again, and probably to continue to keep "doing it" against all the odds. One thing I know is that when Hopkins is told that he cannot do something, he generally proves everyone else wrong. The day that he has a fight and everyone says "you can beat him" then maybe I will say, he might lose.

Hopkins vs Cloud Prediction

On March 9th the 47 year old Bernard Hopkins will once again try and defy the odds by taking on IBF Light Heavyweight champion Tavoris Cloud. I was never a big Bernard Hopkins fan, at least when he was dominating the middleweight division with a record 20 title defenses (it may be more than that actually). However, when he began beating much younger and seemingly stronger fighters, I could not help but fall in love with the guy. It is not often that a great fighter is able to adapt his style to his aging body. Generally as a fighter ages they deny the fact that they are slowing a bit and make little to no change in their style which opens them up to more punishment. Hopkins is one of the rare fighters that has been able to adapt as he ages, enabling him to compete at a world class level well into his fourties, which is something you have to see to believe. I am positive that nobody expected him to last against Antonio Tarver, but lone behold, he took Tarver to school. Same with Kelly Pavlik who was soaring when he fought Hopkins. The Executioner lived up to his name putting a beating on Pavlik and being the first to blemish his record. In fact, that fight was not even close, it was probably the aging warriors best performance. More recently Hopkins defeated the younger stronger and very powerful Jean Pascal. To add insult to injury Hopkins actually did push ups in between rounds!

That being said, Hopkins has not always looked stellar. In his last fight against Chad Dawson, Hopkins was outpointed by his younger and much faster foe, though he was still competitive, he clearly lost the fight. In a long awaited rematch with Roy Jones Jr. a few fights prior to that, Hopkins actually looked old. The fight was a foul filled affair, and this surprised me because Jones Jr. is well beyond his best and Hopkins should have been able to knock him out, however, he still got the win. The question is, can he compete against Cloud who is young, very strong, and very powerful?

Tavoris Cloud has seemingly every advantage going into this fight, except experience. The major problem with Cloud is that he is terribly inactive for such a young fighter, he only fought once in 2012, 2011, and twice in 2010. He is a very solid fighter but also has very limited experience. Common sense says that Cloud is too much for Hopkins, but history tells a different tale. Hopkins has had little trouble with pressure fighters, he dismantled Pavlik, who was supposedly stronger, he schooled Pascal who again was supposed to be too much for Hopkins.

We know Cloud is a strong powerful man, but there are still some unanswered questions that Hopkins should be able to provide. Can Cloud take a good punch? Hopkins is not known as a power puncher but has demonstrated the ability to punch when he needs to, he just generally does not look for the knockout. Can Cloud go 12 hard rounds? Despite Hopkins being 47, he is still a masterful boxer that is always in tremendous shape and unless he ages rapidly overnight, I doubt he will have trouble boxing all night. Hopkins conserves energy because he is unbelievably intelligent and calm in the ring. The only way that can change is if Cloud can somehow manage to dictate the pace of the fight. Now, on to the predictions.

What should happen
The younger fighter Cloud should walk his older foe down, breaking him down over the course of the fight. The aging warrior will go into survival mode looking solely to survive the fight and nothing else. If Cloud does not stop him late, he will win a majority decision.

What could happen
Cloud very well could be too much for Hopkins and he could just completely overwhelm him and stop him quickly. Hopkins could once again surprise us all and put on another dazzling performance which would certainly solidify his place amongst the all time greats.

What I think will happen
I am calling the upset. I think Hopkins puts on a masterful display of boxing and ring savvy yet again. Cloud is made to order for Hopkins, he is right in front of you and he isn't going anywhere. This should, in my opinion, be easy pickings for Hopkins who should cruise to a unanimous decision and win yet another title. It is also possible that Hopkins puts such a beating on Cloud, as he did to Pavlik, that he stops Cloud late.

Bernard Hopkins Highlights

Tavoris Cloud Highlights (vs Glen Johnson)

Golovkin vs Rosado Prediction

On January 19th we get to see just how good Gennady Golovkin is. Sporting an 87% knockout ratio, Golovkin has been impressive, albeit against limited opposition. The best win on his ledger is a 10th round TKO over faded star Kassim Ouma. Rosado, on the other hand, has beaten some quality opposition and has been on somewhat of a roll since his last loss in July of 10. He also stopped the usually durable Sechew Powell in 9 rounds in 2012, which was a great year for Rosado.

This is a difficult one to call for me. On one hand you have the flawed, yet more experienced, Rosado who seems to fold under pressure, like he did against Angulo. The other you have the complete unknown Golovkin.

What should happen
Well, if all goes well it should be an early night for Golovkin, who seems to be the bigger puncher and the stronger guy. Rosado has only been stopped once, by Angulo, but then again he has not really fought too many big punchers. Powell hurt him a couple of times but lost that fight because he seemed intent on landing one punch at a time instead of rely on his jab. So, if Golovkin is who we all think he is, then he should walk through anything Rosado offers and either stop him early or beat him into submission for a late stoppage.

What could happen
Rosado could surprise us like he did against Powell and use his experience to outclass Golovkin, and maybe Golovkin is not what we think he is.  Maybe he has a weak chin, we don't know yet. Because there are a lot of question marks with Golovkin, seemingly anything can happen. He could have a weak chin, he could possibly have terrible stamina, maybe he gets frustrated easily, we just don't know.

What I think will happen
I think Golovkin will maul Rosado, but as long as Rosado is there he will make a fight out of it. I think it will be an early night for Golovkin.

A Classic Revisited

Miguel Cotto vs Antonio Margarito II

Most of us remember the classic brawl that took place in their first fight, however, Margarito's win has been tainted with accusations of loading his gloves with plaster. After the fight there was a bit of controversy as a picture surfaced of Margarito directly after the fight which showed his hand wraps were torn, which is fairly damning. Wraps are gauze and it would be nearly impossible for them to be torn in such a manner, unless of course there was plaster underneath. After the Mosley v. Margarito fight in which Margarito was actually caught cheating it became apparent, albeit in hindsight, that most likely Margarito had loaded gloves against Cotto.

Cotto dominated Margarito early, then seemed to swell up over the period of one round. This would be consistent with plaster as it takes a few rounds to harden. The evidence seems pretty clear, therefore, I refuse to even watch that fight. I recognize there was a first fight, however, I cannot watch that knowing that Margarito was essentially using two weapons against Cotto. The second fight is purely about revenge, Margarito was never really in the fight, however, he took his beating like a man. There were a few times it seemed that Cotto had his man hurt and could have pressed him and taken him out, but he seemed to relish the moment, the revenge he was exacting against his foe. It was probably one of my favorite performances of Miguel Cotto.

Margarito after first Cotto fight

Close up of same hand wrap