Key #1 for Floyd Mayweather Work the Straight Right to the Body and Build the Offense
Photo by USA TODAY
By Brandon Glass
In the staff prediction, I said that Floyd Mayweather’s jab to the body was the key. I am going to slightly back track here. As we all know southpaws are susceptible to right hands and Manny Pacquiao has never seen a right he didn’t eat from an orthodox opponent. Thus, Mayweather should employ his patented straight right to the body, first.
Mayweather has a significant reach advantage and throwing lead straight rights to the body will be the fundamental punch of his offense. He throws harder to the body – a softer target – more so than the head because of his past issues with his hands. That will allow him to do many things, but its subtlety is what makes this punch dangerous for Pacquiao.
Pacquiao is known for endurance, as he throws punches at the same rate in late rounds that he does after the first bell. Mayweather, who looks to dominate the late rounds, will use this straight right to the body to wear Pacquiao down and frustrate his offense. Mayweather is no Gennady Golovkin, but round after round of getting your guts pushed in will wear anyone out and disrupt their focus. Just imagine poking yourself with a needle in the same spot sporadically for 46 minutes.
The lead right to the body will allow Mayweather to fend off Pacquiao’s dashing attack and to score during any gaps in activity while Pacquiao is pondering how to adjust his attack. It is inevitable, Pacquiao will get inside eventually to avoid being on the end of that straight right to the body. This is why Mayweather’s underrated body attack is so important.
Everyone knows Mayweather’s signature punch is the lead right to the head and his opponents avoid that all costs. Even Pacquiao, whose defense is at times nonexistent, knows to avoid this punch. However, if he keeps Pacquiao focused on the lead right to the body, Mayweather will be able to take the straight right upstairs and then open up his arsenal and attack with a variety of punches, depending on how Pacquiao adjusts his attack. At that point I’d expect we see two punches from Mayweather we don’t see too often; his check (left) hook and the uppercut.
As we get to the later rounds if Mayweather is able to build his offense off the straight right to the body, this will lead to frustration, fatigue and possibly the ever evasive knockout of his rival. If the knockout doesn’t come; at least it will be a combination of the first two and a Mayweather victory.
Key #1 for Manny Pacquiao Use the Right Hook
Photo by Chris Hyde
By Lou Catalano
While Floyd Mayweather can throw hooks and crosses with precision, his most effective punches are the jab to the face, the jab to the body, and that nasty straight right hand.
He throws these shots way more often than anything else, and that’s something Manny Pacquiao can use in his favor. Floyd uses the jab to the body to force his opponent to drop his hands, allowing for a wide open target for the right.
If Manny can time Mayweather like Zab Judah did, Floyd will be vulnerable to that southpaw right hook. And “Manilla Ice” is a lethal fucking punch.
If Pacquiao can land this shot successfully a couple of times, not only might he possibly score a knockdown, it will take away one of Mayweather’s most effective weapons. That doesn’t seal the deal for Pacquiao, because Mayweather does just about everything brilliantly, but it sure as hell is a good start.
