Floyd Mayweather JR: If not Manny Pacquiao then Who?
By Delroy Hill
Unbeaten Floyd Mayweather, JR., 41-0, 25 KO’s, has seemingly backed himself into a corner, which, for him, may not be a problem at all.
I always thought that when “Money” decided to come out of retirement, it was for one reason, to silence the critics. Over the course of his famed career, Floyd has taken heat for his choice of opponent. Although they are amazed by what he is capable of doing in the ring, many fans feel that he has cherry picked his opposition and never really taken the biggest challenges out there.
After a brief retirement, Floyd came back in a time when there were no real challenges left for him except then WBA World Welterweight Champion Shane Mosley and Filipino phenom Manny Pacquiao.
The stage was being set for a clash between Pacquiao and Mayweather as Manny defeated Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton, both roughly 17 months after losses to Floyd. The game of one-ups-manship began with these two fights as Pacquiao stopped both fighters in quicker, more emphatic fashion.
“Money” continued the game by defeating the man who gave Pacquiao fits over the course of two fights, Juan Manuel Marquez in a lopsided unanimous decision victory last year.
Since then, Pacquiao has scored victories over former WBO Welterweight and WBA World Welterweight Champion and current WBA World Light Middleweight Champion Miguel Cotto and Joshua Clottey. Mayweather was impressive in his last outing, a dominant, one sided unanimous decision victory over the great Shane Mosley.
Mayweather and Pacquiao have been unable to reach an agreement to fight each other. After two rounds of failed negotiations, Pacquiao has moved on and is scheduled to fight Antonio Margarito on November 13th at Dallas Cowboys’ Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Although Bob Arum gave Floyd a deadline to sign a contract to fight Pacquiao on November 13th, hard core fans assumed Floyd would take the rest of the year off as he has said his fights come once a year like the Super Bowl. He considers himself the greatest of all time and he does not march to the beat of the fans’ drum. He chooses the path that his career takes, by maximizing his money making ability.
This formula does not always please everyone, but it has worked for the self proclaimed current “cash cow” of the sport.
Now let me say it here. I believe that the super fight between Floyd and Manny will happen some time next year. Floyd made a statement via Ustream, noting that Pacquiao would take the random drug tests that he wants him to take. Team Pacquiao has stated that he will take the tests in order to make the fight happen.
So I don’t see any reason why this fight shouldn’t happen.
If for some reason the fight doesn’t happen, or at least not right away, I think Floyd only has a few options. If he is looking for the best fight to be made from a financial stand point, there is WBA World Light Welterweight Champion Amir Khan or Miguel Cotto.
If he does fight Khan, a fight he would likely win easily, he will be criticized again for fighting a smaller man. A win over Cotto is respectable, but doesn’t do much in the Pound for Pound rankings since Cotto was already beaten badly by Pacquiao.
If Floyd is willing to sacrifice a few million dollars, but gain a multitude of respect he could face middleweight king Sergio Martinez or Paul Williams.
Both fighters are naturally bigger than Floyd and each has their own way of possibly giving Floyd problems. They could also give Mayweather an opportunity to win a title in a sixth weight class. Martinez is an excellent boxer, who uses movement and sharp counter punching. He has enough speed, good defense, and an awkward style that may be tricky for Floyd to figure out.
Williams is very tall and would have a height and reach advantage over Money. He also comes forward, throwing a constant barrage of punches. His work rate alone could be a test for Floyd to deal with. The problem here is, that one of these fighters will have another loss by the time they did meet Mayweather, since they face each other in a rematch on November 20th. That loss would almost certainly rule out the option of fighting Floyd for either fighter.
Bottom line, we all want to see Floyd fight Manny. That’s the best fight that can be made right now and the sport and its fans need it.
But if it can’t be made these are the options Floyd Mayweather has right now. I think he beats all four of the fighters mentioned, including Pacquiao, but we will have to wait and see.