Though some boxing pundits might want you to believe this would be an evenly matched, competitive fight, (especially with the surprisingly close fight Mayweather had with Marcos Maidana, a much slower and less polished opponent than Pacquiao) here are FOUR reasons Manny has no shot against Floyd.
1. Styles Make Fights
In general, Pacquiao has had the most trouble in his career when squaring up against classic counter punchers, and of course, Mayweather may just be the best counter puncher in the modern era of boxing.
Manny is an aggressive, come forward fighter who likes to keep pressure on his opponents with a large volume of punches while throwing combinations from odd angles. These tactics have aided him in becoming a world champion in 8 different weight classes and one of the biggest draws in boxing, but has also been his downfall in some of his closely contested wins and a few of his losses. In particular, one can point to his 4 fights with Juan Manuel Marquez as evidence of this. Marquez routinely used Pacquiao’s aggressiveness against him, often seeming as if he was waiting for Manny to finish his attack to land punches of his own. He succeeded somewhat often, leaving Manny off balance, out of position and vulnerable for more punishment. Mayweather is faster and stronger than Marquez and extremely savvy. He wouldn’t likely engage in a brawl with Manny, instead choosing to methodically pick him apart for twelve rounds.
2. Wear and Tear
Though they are both close in age, Manny (35 years old, 63 professional fights) has taken significantly more punishment over his career than Floyd (37 years old, 46 professional fights). Even before his 6th round, devastating
K.O. loss to Marquez, Pacquiao had absorbed a considerable amount of punishment due to his attacking style. Possibly because of this the Pac-Man has looked as if he may have lost a step over the last few years, where as Mayweather has looked as if he may have gained one.
3. Mayweather’s Legacy
To say it plainly, Mayweather would never fight anybody he thinks he can lose to.
Mayweather is very conscious of his legacy. It is apparent that he would like to end his career after surpassing Rocky Marciano’s undefeated 49-0 record, and at 47-0, it seems as if he has more than a real shot to do so. He is also a unique star in the sport of boxing, one who does not need titles to validate him or his career, a fighter who can fight whoever he wants whenever he wants and is guaranteed to generate the biggest pay-per-view earnings. This allows him and his camp to call all the shots when deciding who his next opponent will be. He doesn’t need the money that a super fight with Manny will bring in. If he thought Pacquiao had a chance to beat him (besides the proverbial “punchers chance”, of course) he simply wouldn’t fight him.
4. The Bob Arum Factor
This might be the biggest deal breaker in deciding if they would actually ever fight each other.
Bob Arum and Top Rank represented Mayweather up until 2008, when Floyd paid $750,000 to get out of his contract with the promotion. He accused Arum of owing him money and refusing to pay, to which Arum countered by saying he and Top Rank where the ones who where owed by Mayweather. Claims and counter claims insued, and the two entities proceeded to go in and out of court in an attempt to settle there legal disputes. Though the litigation is over, the ill will between the two continues till this day and has most likely been the most detrimental factor in Manny and Floyd stepping into the ring together (Pacquiao is represented by Arum and Top Rank). It seems that Mayweather would rather stick it to Arum then to get the biggest pay day of his career. Once again, it seems as if money is not the biggest factor determining whether these two will fight.
Mayweather promised he would fight Marcos Maidana differently than he usually fights his opponents, and for once, helped deliver an exciting, wildly competitive fight, choosing to stand and trade with Maidana. But don’t be fooled: Floyd “Money” Mayweather is still the pound-for-pound king of boxing and the competition is not even close to knocking him off of his throne.
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