Mayweather vs Pacquiao skill focus: Defense

Boxing purists say the first rule of boxing is to not get hit.  If there is any advantage that Floyd Mayweather Jr has over Manny Pacquiao, it would be the former’s talent to follow this rule.

Mayweather uses a lot of nicknames. “Pretty Boy Floyd” maybe one of the most overused. There is a reason for this. Mayweather boasts he has climbed down the ring many times unscathed. He boasts of the fact that no fighter in his 47 fights has really inflicted any damage, thus the nickname. He claims to be as pretty as the day he first started to fight.

Arguably, Mayweather is best described as the best defensive boxer of all time. Compubox notes he has been hit 46% less times now at welterweight (147 lbs.) than when he was fighting as a lightweight (130 lbs.).  His fighting style is anchored on his masterful defensive skills.  Visually, he sets himself apart by utilizing the “shoulder roll” technique and “high guard” stance.

The knack to implement these skills is anchored on courage and speed. Courage because one must be ready to take incoming punches without flinching and speed to allow you to minimize the power of that punch.

Having mastered these, Mayweather easily reads and rolls with any punch thrown to him.  This and his hand speed, the undefeated fighter has made most his past opponents look like newbies.

However, Mayweather has not fought a fighter with the kind of speed the fighting congressman from the Philippines will bring atop that ring on May 2.

The moniker “Pacman”, although a play of the first syllables of his names, is so apt. Pacquiao may be the best offensive boxer the sport has ever seen, the exact opposite of Mayweather.

Much like the video game character, Pacquiao just keeps coming forward “chewing” up all of his challengers along the way.

He is a busy fighter throwing an average of 69 punches per round and throws his punches always in bunches.  In fact, his aggressiveness has also proven to be his downfall as evidenced by his knockout loss to Juan Manuel Marquez who floored Pacquiao as he was launching an attack.

Make no mistake about it though; Pacquiao’s defense is his offense. He outworks everybody from the opening bell not allowing anyone to hit him squarely. He moves in and out, moves a lot from side to side. Furthermore, though not visible all the time, he adds a lot of shoulder fakes and arm feints before throwing a flurry… A trait that has made him a very dangerous opponent.

Floyd Mayweather Sr in many interviews in the past has spoken about a strategy employed by his son leveraging on the “shoulder roll” and “high guard” defensive stance.  He calls it “walking down his opponent.”  Oscar de la Hoya made a reference to this plan in one of his recent interviews when asked about his thoughts on the May 2 event.

They both describe how Floyd Jr would lure his opponents into throwing punches by either closing the gap between them or purposely get himself pinned into the ropes.  He would then proceed to roll or parry the punches and end the exchange by connecting with one or two punches of his.

The plan is to make the opponent miss a lot in the hope that he punches himself out. This then will allow Mayweather to pick his punches without any problems especially in the later rounds.

This plan has clearly worked well in his 47 wins.

Pacquiao however is much faster and stronger than any of Mayweather’s past conquests. Pacquiao’s superior agility and mobility protects him from any fighter.  He is everywhere… and in the next second nowhere, much like Yoda in Star Wars, Manny is never in one place long enough to get hurt.

The key therefore to this fight is stamina.

Will Mayweather have enough to withstand the onslaught of Pacquiao and have the opportunity to pile up points in the later rounds?  Or is Pacquiao ready to keep and maintain a work rate level that will allow him to apply constant pressure and throw as many punches in the last rounds as he would in the early rounds?

Nearing fight day, it seems that the odds are closing in. Though the financial split remains to be 60-40 the odds may soon be even. – Rappler.com