Floyd Mayweather Jr vs. Manny Pacquiao Master Discussion Thread

[Koljack]

Contract not sorted my ass. The public knows Floyd is holding up the fight.

[Hype job]

Floyd just tweeted #NBAAllStarNYC

is the announcement coming?

[pasawayako]

PAC is 3-1 underdog


Jump on it lads

I'm betting atleast $1000 for this fight. This will be an easy money for pac.

[Wolfie*]

Floyd just tweeted #NBAAllStarNYC

is the announcement coming?

Call me ****** but I think that tweet was about basketball only.

[babynuts]

I'm not sure if anybody agrees but if Floyd is afraid of Manny, i don't think he's afraid of Manny as a fighter, more afraid as Manny as a star.

Floyd's whole angle/selling point is that he is the "face of boxing" etc.. The truth is that only him and Pacquiao are the true crossover stars in boxing. They are the only people casuals and non followers of boxing know. If Floyd had lost to a Maidana or Ortiz or somebody, it would be quickly forgotten about amongst casuals and people who don't really follow the sport, those fighters would not become superstars with crossover appeal even if they beat him, the sport just doesnt carry that much weight anymore in popular culture. Now Manny is a totally different thing. He is just as famous as Mayweather, maybe more popular, he's crossed over outside of boxing. People have been demanding this fight for years now. It's huge. Should Floyd lose to Manny, his entire reputation would be done and his ego massively dented in front of a worldwide audience, the entire worlds media and all those people who said he was afraid of Manny.

If you put aside popularity and fame. Losing to an Ortiz, Maidana or even Canelo would have been a worse loss from a boxing perspective. In terms of boxing, there is no real shame in losing to Manny Pacquiao. But when you bring all the other factors back into it and add that with ego and the audience who will take interest in this fight...then a loss to Pacquiao is more damaging to Mayweather than anything else. Even if Rod Salka beat Mayweather, it'd be less damaging than a loss to Pacquiao and probably a worldwide public embarrassment for Mayweather.

I'm sure Floyd thinks Manny is a top fighter anyway, so of course he wont underestimate that. But i don't think Floyd is a coward in terms of being in the ring with anybody. I think he's more afraid of his ego being crushed by his biggest and only real rival as the "face of boxing" and the argument of who's the best of the era. I think he's been hoping he can maintain that without really having to prove it.

This is not a knock against Mayweather, i actually think he beats Manny. I just also think he feels it is a big risk because there's no certainties in boxing. It's not certain he will beat Manny or anybody else. It's just that the damage caused by losing to anybody but Manny is very minor in comparison.

[aihki]

Found this article and post here so floyd can make a better battle plan.

5 Reasons Manny can beat Floyd
1. Hand Speed -- Floyd Mayweather Jr. has only been significantly hurt in two fights against two opponents... Zab Judah and "Sugar" Shane Mosley. What do both of those opponents have in common? Hand speed. Zab Judah was able to control the beginning of their fight because he could match the hand speed of Floyd. Shane Mosley nearly put Mayweather out in the fourth round with two crushing right hands that the "defensive wizard" never saw coming. The key point here is that both Zab and Shane were washed up when they fought Floyd, but still possessed enough hand speed to give Floyd issues. Manny Pacquiao's hands are much quicker then both of the aforementioned fighters and come from very odd angles.

2. Southpaw -- Floyd has always had more issues with southpaws then conventional fighters... especially highly skilled southpaws with hand speed. Manny Pacquiao is a conventional fighter's nightmare. His straight left is dynamite and Floyd's shoulder-roll defense is not built to combat the punch. Floyd's defense of the punch will be to counter, which will open up more opportunities for Manny and Floyd to engage. Advantage Manny.

3. Footwork -- The most underrated aspect of Manny Pacquiao's greatness is his footwork. He's constantly moving, getting to the spots he wants to get to and always in position to throw power shots. It's incredibly difficult to create distance with Manny because he can hop in and out at a rapid pace, all while throwing heavy combinations. If Floyd's strategy is to stay on the outside and constantly move, he'll have a tough time keeping Manny off of him for the duration of the fight.

4. Power Punching -- While Floyd is an incredible boxer with amazing defensive skills, he's never been known as a big puncher. He doesn't fully commit to his punches so he can eliminate the risk of return fire. He does what he does extremely well and you can't complain about the results [undefeated in 47 bouts]. But the recipe to beat Manny Pacquiao begins and ends with combination punching. Will Floyd offer himself up by throwing multiple punches at a time? Manny on the other hand is the guru of combination punching. He can fire off six, seven, even eight punches at a time... all with power. If Floyd cannot earn Manny's respect, I'm not sure Mayweather can keep Manny off of him.

5. Mental -- This fight should have taken place years ago... and while we can all speculate on the reasons it never commenced, the overwhelming majority lean on the side of Manny Pacquiao. To me, it's no coincidence that this fight is happening on the tail of a five year "No KO" streak for Manny. Regardless, Floyd has much more to lose in this fight than Manny. Floyd's entire brand is built on being undefeated and the T.B.E. [The Best Ever] campaign. Manny Pacquiao's lost five times and his legacy is entirely secure. He's fought [and beaten] the best in the sport.... except Floyd. It's no secret that Floyd Mayweather Jr. hand picks his opponents while balancing risk and reward. But what happens if this fight is close or Floyd's losing late in the fight? How does he react? Does Floyd open up his offense to win rounds? Manny's been in wars.. many of them. He's been on both sides of winning and losing. He's been KO'd. Floyd's never truly been in deep waters... and if he finds himself struggling to stay afloat against the other greatest fighter of his era... what makes you think he won't drown?

[aihki]

I'm not sure if anybody agrees but if Floyd is afraid of Manny, i don't think he's afraid of Manny as a fighter, more afraid as Manny as a star.

Floyd's whole angle/selling point is that he is the "face of boxing" etc.. The truth is that only him and Pacquiao are the true crossover stars in boxing. They are the only people casuals and non followers of boxing know. If Floyd had lost to a Maidana or Ortiz or somebody, it would be quickly forgotten about amongst casuals and people who don't really follow the sport, those fighters would not become superstars with crossover appeal even if they beat him, the sport just doesnt carry that much weight anymore in popular culture. Now Manny is a totally different thing. He is just as famous as Mayweather, maybe more popular, he's crossed over outside of boxing. People have been demanding this fight for years now. It's huge. Should Floyd lose to Manny, his entire reputation would be done and his ego massively dented in front of a worldwide audience, the entire worlds media and all those people who said he was afraid of Manny.

If you put aside popularity and fame. Losing to an Ortiz, Maidana or even Canelo would have been a worse loss from a boxing perspective. In terms of boxing, there is no real shame in losing to Manny Pacquiao. But when you bring all the other factors back into it and add that with ego and the audience who will take interest in this fight...then a loss to Pacquiao is more damaging to Mayweather than anything else. Even if Rod Salka beat Mayweather, it'd be less damaging than a loss to Pacquiao and probably a worldwide public embarrassment for Mayweather.

I'm sure Floyd thinks Manny is a top fighter anyway, so of course he wont underestimate that. But i don't think Floyd is a coward in terms of being in the ring with anybody. I think he's more afraid of his ego being crushed by his biggest and only real rival as the "face of boxing" and the argument of who's the best of the era. I think he's been hoping he can maintain that without really having to prove it.

This is not a knock against Mayweather, i actually think he beats Manny. I just also think he feels it is a big risk because there's no certainties in boxing. It's not certain he will beat Manny or anybody else. It's just that the damage caused by losing to anybody but Manny is very minor in comparison.

This i agree, and also it got me thinking come fight night, audience will boo on him when he goes algeri running or clottey shelling.

Imagine fight night, people will be wildly cheering pac when he hits full gas pedal, it will be exciting moment to see for pac and floyd fan alike... highly doubt pac will think twice on the attack considering how he laughs when asked about floyd's toughness.

[Ray*]

Floyd just tweeted #NBAAllStarNYC

is the announcement coming?

And? People just need to let it be. If they are going to announce the fight then they will, HBO nor Showtime has come out and claim a deal has been agreed to by both camps, until then people shouldn't take any word of Pac camp regarding "signed" contract, before Pac can sign a contract all party involve must be in agreement.

[babynuts]

5. Mental But what happens if this fight is close or Floyd's losing late in the fight? How does he react? Does Floyd open up his offense to win rounds? Manny's been in wars.. many of them. He's been on both sides of winning and losing. He's been KO'd. Floyd's never truly been in deep waters... and if he finds himself struggling to stay afloat against the other greatest fighter of his era... what makes you think he won't drown?

He was clearly hurt against Mosley and in deep waters in the 2nd round but he dug deep, composed himself and reacted brilliantly. One could also argue he was losing the first Maidana fight but found a way to win. He did have to dig deep in that fight.

I understand what you're saying though. If you're going to beat Mayweather on points, you need to probably win the first 6 rounds and try and steal some late on. If he's already started to control things by 4 rounds, you might as well switch off because you know the result. How would he react if he was clearly like 7-3 down with 2 rounds to go, knowing he needs a knockout to win. We've never seen that, but that's also because he's so good, he's never allowed anybody to put him in that position. So you really have to give him credit for that. You basically have to assume that if Mayweather is still in the ring by the championship rounds, it's because he's in complete control.

[AgainstTheRopes]

And? People just need to let it be. If they are going to announce the fight then they will, HBO nor Showtime has come out and claim a deal has been agreed to by both camps, until then people shouldn't take any word of Pac camp regarding "signed" contract, before Pac can sign a contract all party involve must be in agreement.

I doubt HBO and Showtime would make an announcement that they've made a deal on their end. So its possible that they may very well have a deal right now but others are reporting that there are still a couple things to iron it.