Why Manny Pacquiao can’t beat Floyd Mayweather Jr

Why Manny Pacquiao can’t beat Floyd Mayweather Jr

By John Raspanti, DoghouseBoxing.com (Oct 7, 2009)

When Freddie Roach said “Floyd needs us – we don’t need him” I grinned and thought to myself “Yep, old fearless forecaster Freddie saw the same thing I did a couple of weeks ago”.

He saw unparalleled speed, skill and slickness. He saw a natural talent, a defensive wizard who shucks and slides and shimmies.

He saw a good fighter reduced to an average one. He saw total dominance on display and I betcha ya he didn’t like it at all. You know why he didn’t like it? Cause he saw his fighter losing. He saw speed versus speed, but his guy was a hair slower. That’s not something he’s used to seeing. Hell, that’s something NONE of us are used to seeing.

Can you imagine “the ninja” Manny Pacquiao, the human buzzsaw, the alleged best fight on the planet, being beaten to the punch? It seems unlikely when you remember his last few fights.

Manny looked very good in dismantling and knocking out David Diaz. He looked razor sharp and as quick as a lightening rod in dominating a faded Oscar De La Hoya. In the ring with Ricky Hatton he showed speed, footwork and awesome power in knocking cold the tough Brit from Manchester. But are all these natural attributes enough to topple “Money” Mayweather?

I don’t think so and in a minute I’ll tell you why. Trust me it pains me to say ‘it’ because I’m pretty tired of Mayweather’s act, if it is an act. I have no idea what ‘it’ is. Who knows where the act begins and ends.

Whatever it is it works and the act never gets in the way of the fighter, and what a fighter he is.

Ok, let’s look at why I don’t think Manny can beat Floyd. For awhile now Manny has been using his speed and improved footwork to beat his opponents around the ring and to the punch. With the help of Freddie Roach his balance has improved, along with his combinations and accuracy. Roach has taught Manny how to harness his natural aggressiveness which in turn makes him a much more dangerous and difficult fighter to deal with. Couple this with an amazing work ethic and desire and what you have is a compelling creation of a fighter. Manny has grown with each fight literally and figuratively. Floyd can’t touch the humilty and honesty that Manny projects, which touches people and inspires them to follow and admire.

Now let’s talk about Floyd Mayweather. I know he likes to flash all his money, hence his nickname. I think he’s more “the natural”, the same title of the Robert Redford baseball movie. Redford played Roy Hobbs who was born to play baseball. He can do it all, pitch (striking out a character based on Babe Ruth) run and later (after getting in the way of a bullet) hit. Boy could he hit.

That’s Floyd Mayweather the natural, born to box. His genes spill with boxing blood, it’s all he knows. It’s the thing he was meant to do. Floyd has worked hard but never as hard as Pacquiao. He hasn’t had too. His footwork and balance have always been top notch. His defensive ability is “Willie Pep like”. His hand speed is blurry, his combinations blistering. Not with a lot of power mind you, but accurate and stinging. Combine this with a newly discovered jab (thank you daddy Floyd) and what you have is a nearly impossible mountain to climb especially if you’re eyeing him from the opposite corner.

Floyd is two inches taller then Manny and with a reach advantage of… five inches. Yep, five inches, I can certainly see Floyd in the middle of the ring using this advantage. He’s the bigger man and yes the quicker one. Manny has never faced anyone like Floyd Mayweather, if he has any doubts he can ask his friend Juan Manual Marquez what it was like. I don’t think he’d like the answers.

Floyd will “out quick” Manny and hang with him step for step. Manny will find himself on the defensive more as Mayweather’s combinations pepper him. He might get a little reckless as Floyd starts to build a lead in the middle rounds. Manny will continue to try and throttle Floyd, but the money is in the bank as well as the decision.

So there you have it, natural ability versus ability learned and nurtured. It’s the old argument of levels of talent and it seems at least to me that Mayweather has a more of them than Pacquiao.