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Why We Shouldn’t Count out Manny Pacquiao

MannyPacquiao - Jeoffrey Maitem - Getty Images22 Photo by Jeoffrey Maitem/Getty Images

It’s on. The biggest fight that could have possibly been made in the sport of boxing is finally on.

Undisputed No.1 pound-for-pound king, Floyd “Money” Mayweather (47-0-0, 26 KOs) announced on Friday, February 20 that he will finally fight long-time counterpart, Manny “Pac ManPacquiao (57-5-2, 38 KOs) on May 2 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

And now it’s time to take sides.

It’s been over six long years since Mayweather and Pacquiao first negotiated terms of a super fight, and now the question that boxing fans have been debating for a decade will finally be answered:

Who’s the greatest boxer of this generation?

Early Vegas odds show Mayweather a favorite at around -250. Pacquiao, the opening dog, is currently sitting at roughly +200, give or take based on betting action, which early has been on the very “live” Pacquiao.

The vibe on Twitter is most people are leaning towards Mayweather, who’s been able to keep his undefeated record through 47 professional fights, and who has hardly ever seen trouble in the ring.

Pacquiao, an eight-division world champion, was widely considered the best fighter in the world until being robbed in his first fight with Timothy Bradley Jr., then knocked out and left snoring in a puddle of his own shame by Juan Manuel Marquez.

Instead of retiring like many thought he would, he got back in the ring.

He’s reeled off three impressive wins in a row against Brandon Rios, a rematch with Bradley Jr. to win back his WBO Welterweight title, and most recently against outmatched cage dweller, Chris Algieri back in November.

Now at age 36, Pacquiao gets the greatest opportunity of his career, to prove that he is indeed the greatest fighter of this era.

So let’s take a look at Pacquiao’s chances, why they’re good, and why he’s by far Floyd Mayweather’s toughest opponent to date.

Floyd Mayweather, now pushing 40 years old, will be in the ring with a challenger far more talented and well conditioned than any fighter he’s taken on before.

I know its cliché but “styles make fights,” and it’s the clash of styles in this fight that will keep it close until the final bell.

Let’s first take a look at Mayweather’s resume, it’s very impressive, but a pattern has developed that has drawn criticism since his fight with Zab Judah back in 2005.

It’s a fight that Judah controlled early, even scoring a knockdown on Mayweather that was unrightfully called a slip by referee Richard Steele.

Mayweather was eventually able to turn the tables on the fight and win a unanimous decision, but something bothered him about Judah’s style.

Since then, Mayweather’s faced 10 different opponents, only two (Victor Ortiz and Robert Guerrero) of which were southpaws, and none of which had the speed to match Judah’s.

Pacquiao will be the first fighter in 10 years to not only show Mayweather that southpaw stance, but to combine it with very fast hands, and world-class footwork.

Adding in extremely rare angles and a jumpy, in-and-out style, Pacquiao will be able to disguise his punches against Mayweather, whose defense has shown more holes in his past two fights than ever before.

It’s a recipe that is going to force Mayweather to make adjustments he’s never had to make in the past.

So let’s talk about mid-fight adjustments, because Mayweather’s better at making them than any fighter in boxing today.

A clear and recent example is Mayweather’s first fight with Marcos Maidana. Floyd gave up early rounds to the hard-charging slugger who didn’t have the intelligence to realize he was being set up to tire out and be dominated in the second half of the fight.

By the later rounds, Maidana was gassed, and Mayweather had the read and timing on him to land easy counter shots.

Don’t expect Pacquiao to fall into this trap. His domination on the judge’s scorecards in the second half of Pacquiao-Bradley 2 shows he’s far too well-conditioned and experienced to tire out mid-rounds.

Expect controlled aggression and high work rate on a round-to-round basis. It’s a marathon, not a sprint, and Pacquiao knows that.

From Maidana 1, to his fight with Miguel Cotto, and even in the early rounds against Victor Ortiz, we’ve seen Mayweather become frustrated with opponents who are able to muck-up a fight.

Guys who have smothered Mayweather on the ropes, worked feverously on the inside trying to hit him with anything they can throw, and even taking an occasional cheap shot, have been able to crawl under Mayweather’s skin.

Mayweather  Maidana 1 Photo by Reuters

It’s a good strategy that his opponents use to keep out of the center of the ring, which is exactly where Mayweather wants to be.

I don’t know if it’s Pacquiao’s awkward style or his sense to wildly mix it up at times, but fighting ugly comes naturally to him.

If Pacquiao is successful at being the aggressor, he’ll certainly be in close enough to make things uncomfortable for Mayweather, smothering any reach advantage Mayweather will have.

In conclusion, it’s safe to say there’s a very good chance this fight goes to the scorecards considering neither man has knocked out an opponent in a combined 15 previous fights.

There’s also a very good chance that due to both men’s elite talent, and the fact they’re both fighting the toughest opponents of their careers. This will be a close fight that will have us debating who will get the decision right up until the scorecards are read.

So don’t count out the underdog, don’t count out the aggressor, the man who’s rolled over great fighters in the past like Miguel Cotto, Ricky Hatton, Antonio Margarito, Oscar De La Hoya, Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera and many other top-echelon opponents.

Because this fight will be decided in the championship rounds, and there’s a good chance Manny Pacquiao will be the one who comes out on top.

If you have any thoughts about this article or want to discuss Mayweather-Pacquiao, the most anticipated boxing match in years, please feel free to do so in the comments section below.

Also be sure to follow RoundByRoundBoxing.com for all your news and updates leading up to the fight.

Header Photo By: Vincent Yu

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