Manny Pacquiao Vs Floyd Mayweather JR: IN THE WORKS
By Geno McGahee
Last night, Manny Pacquiao, 53-3-2, 38 KO’s, dominated Shane Mosley, adding another big name to his record, and now there is only one man standing, and that is the elusive inside of the ring and now outside of the ring, Floyd Mayweather, JR., 41-0, 25 KO’s.
While watching Pacquiao stalk Mosley, you couldn’t help but to imagine what Floyd Mayweather, JR., would do with this force if it were across from him. The two fighters have equal track records with completely different styles and the man that implements his style, will win the fight. Unfortunately, the boxing public has been forced to wait due to the unwillingness of Floyd to step up and take Manny on, and perhaps the hope that Pacquiao would lose before the public kicked in the Mayweather door has also been extinguished. Floyd needs to take this fight for the good of boxing.
There were comments about the technique of Pacquiao last night in his aggression and although he may not have been as technically sound as he usually is, he seemed stronger and more imposing. Shane Mosley was dropped and quickly realized that this was not a winnable fight and jumped into a shell, and who can blame him? Pacquiao is hard to hit cleanly because of his southpaw stance and movement, and he scares his opponents into not fighting by throwing more if his foe begins to punch.
Floyd Mayweather, JR., has the ability to control his opposition, pick his shots, and avoid the incoming, but he has not faced a guy like Pacquiao. If he were to pick his spot and land his shot, Manny would throw combinations in return, and it would be up to Floyd’s great reflexes to find the eye of the storm and land without taking too many shots himself.
If the Floyd Mayweather, JR – Manny Pacquiao fight does not occur, it will be a boxing tragedy. Floyd is supposed to return in July and expect it not to be against Manny. He has been on the shelf too long to just jump into the ring with the PacMan. He will take on a name opponent that will really have no shot, but probably sound OK on paper, dominate and win, and then hopefully will take on Pacquiao.
If Floyd continues to pass on the Filipino sensation, then there are no worlds left to conquer for Pacquiao. There has been some talk of Juan Manuel Marquez in a third encounter, but with Marquez’s diminished reflexes and advanced age, he may not be able to hold off Manny for another 12 rounds. Outside of Floyd, it’s hard to imagine any other fighter having a chance in there with him.
We should hear in the relatively near future that the two fighters are talking again about the super fight, but it has fallen through on two occasions and most are uncertain if it will ever materialize, but history and the public may demand it. Floyd proudly boasts his pound for pound status, but it’s time to defend it and settle the matter, one way or another, without asking for a ridiculous 100 million dollars.
Shane Mosley noted after the Pacquiao fight that Manny is the true pound for pound best in the game. Considering he faced Floyd in one of his recent fights, and had to the comparison to make, perhaps he revealed the secret behind why Floyd is so hesitant to face Pacquiao. Maybe the legions of PacFans are onto something.