Top 10 Reasons to Hope for Mayweather vs Maidana II
Welterweight champ, Marcos Maidana, otherwise known as “El Chino” to his friends, and “The man who kicked my ass“ to his opponents, has been lying low in the tall grass. While Floyd Mayweather was busy posting pics of his pet hamster wearing one of his 20 Rolex watches, El Chino has been in the trenches sharpening his blade and donning war paint. The polar opposite of Mayweather, Maidana is not pretty, he’s not flashy, and he doesn’t care about publicity. He commented before this fight that he would be just as happy schooling the Pretty Boy in an empty room than in a ring in Vegas with 17,000 maniacal fans. While this may have been just be another guy trying to convince us, and maybe himself, that he was ready to fight the undefeated man of mucho jewelry, something in the look of his eyes just screamed truth, and in Chino, there was truth.
No one dared predict what would come to pass on this night at the MGM Grand’s famous squared circle. Floyd had already handled everybody and everything that dared look in his direction, so why would anyone blink an eye when he was matched up with the non-descript bruiser from the country made famous by Eva Peron? Argentina after all, was not burning down the doors of the boxing community with a long list of title contenders.
With that said, this contest would not only represent a fantastic night of boxing, but also an evening of pure magic between the undefeated warrior in Mayweather, and the hungry underdog in Maidana. We have compiled ten points in remembrance of Mayweather vs. Maidana I that will make the possibility of Mayweather vs. Maidana II a fight to rival anything that we have seen in our generation.
10. Strategies
Coming into the contest, Maidana knew he would never win a boxing match in the middle of the ring with the Pretty Boy, so he wisely made it a street fight. With an aggressive style reminiscent of the hatchet throwing Mexican welterweight Antonio Margarito, Maidana came right at Pretty Boy Floyd with a relentless barrage of over the top haymakers that left Mayweather wondering if the money was really worth it. To make matters worse for Floyd, Marcos manhandled him with the ferocity of a high school sophomore on his first prom date. Floyd’s only chance was to curl up in a ball against the ropes and pray for a blackout in the arena to stop the carnage.
For Maidana, any attempt at a knockout via the headshot would be a waste of time; Floyd is just too gifted at slipping to the side and countering with that nasty check hook. His strategy then was to give the Money Man no place to slip to. He crowded him. He bullied him. He manhandled him. He just straight beat on him.
9. Dirty Bag “O” Tricks
The money man’s response was the same as it has always been, to open up his dirty bag ‘o’ tricks on the opponent beginning with the forearm to the throat, a continuous hooking of Maidana’s arm, and a grabbing of the top of his head to drive him down. Maidana’s counter was to drop in the more than the occasional low blow, and to continue to fight with one hand pounding the top of Mayweather’s head whenever Floyd hooked his arm.
8. History in the Making?
With the manhandling by the Argentinian, a sense of history in the making permeated the arena. By the 6th, the fight was taking on the aura of a pitcher tossing a perfect game. No hits, no walks, no nothing, and we were closing in on the end. With each new round, people began to ask themselves whether this was the round that Floyd would simply stop all of this nonsense and restore world order with a devastating right, or a combination of nastiness that would put this underdog back in his place, but bell after bell, Maidana not only stood tall, but roared forward. Was this the perfect game in the making?
7. The Comeback
As the fight wore on, there was change in the air. While Floyd continued to endure the inhumane attack from Maidana, he steadfastly countered; picking apart the aggressive pugilists and in the process, restoring world order. By the 11th and 12th rounds, the cloud of uncertainty had cleared, and fans would have to wait for another night to witness history. It was apparent that Floyd may have dodged the largest bullet in his career. The pitcher had given up a bloop single in the 9th; there would be no perfect game…
6. He is Floyd Mayweather
Quite simply, there is a reason why the Pretty Boy was 45-0 prior to this evening. Floyd Mayweather once again became Floyd Mayweather, the magician of precision who slipped in clean shot after clean shot. While Marcos was dropping 5 and 6 punch combinations, only 1-2 were doing any damage. When the Money Mayweather let loose, he hit paydirt; landing at much higher percentage rate than the Argentinian. According to Showtime’s ShoStats, “Maidana threw more than DOUBLE the number thrown by Mayweather. Maidana threw 858 punches compared to Mayweather’s 426. Mayweather, however, landed at a 54% clip, while Maidana connected at 26%.”
5. The Decision
According to the Los Angeles Times, “The judges give Mayweather a majority decision. Judge Michael Pernick called it a draw at 114-114. Burt Clements had a wildly favored decision for Mayweather, 117-111, and Dave Moretti called it 116-112 for Mayweather.” While the scores of both Pernick and Moretti could at least be called respectable, (although more appropriate scores would have had the contest around 115-113 for Floyd), the Clements score of 117-111 for Mayweather makes those in the know wonder if he is not in desperate need of corrective vision. Just once it would be nice to see a balanced scorecard that actually reflected what went on in the ring, and not the wild imagination of the judges.
4. No, Floyd, not Really…
Mayweather made the comment post-fight that he stood in toe to toe with the Mad Argentinian because he wanted to give the fans a good show, but everyone with a pulse and half an ounce of common sense could see that the not so Pretty Boy was fighting off of the ropes against his will. Mayweather would have given half of his jewelry collection to Maidana just to let him get to the middle of the ring where he thrives, but this was not going to be the case.
3. It’s Not All About the Money for Mayweather
So why did this hungry Argentinian with a taste for all things pain and utter domination, lose to the aging champ, because the aging champ IS Floyd Mayweather. Many have been critical of Floyd for his antics both in, and even more so out of the ring. The general public has had enough of him flaunting his fleet of black luxury cars in Vegas, along with his matching fleet of white luxury cars in Miami all so he can keep track of which city he is in at the time. Or the fact that he carries zip lock bags full of $100 bills wherever he goes. People see him as just another loudmouth professional athlete who has to remind everyone that he is richer than they are. And because of this, the public is missing a key part of who Money Mayweather really is, the best pound for pound boxer in the world, period!
2. A Boost for the Sweet Science
Chink in the armor or not, 37 year old Floyd Pretty Boy Mayweather showed that he IS every bit the champion that he says he is, and is still the man to beat. However, as for Maidana, he has now elevated himself to elite status with this magnificent showing, and this, combined with his previous win over loudmouth Adrien Broner, shows that the man from Argentina is the real deal. With that said, the biggest winner here may just be the sweet science itself. This fight was a legitimate contest where both sides came out winners regardless of the scorecards, and with some very questionable judging decisions in the last few years, a fight like this is just what the doctor ordered for boxing. These two warriors who have proven that they belong in the annals of boxing history, and more contests like this could bring legitimacy back to a sport that has become a has-been in recent times; MMA’s ugly stepsister if you will.
1. Maidana Has Shown the World That Pacquiao is Only One of Floyd’s Problems Now…
Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports Images
Unfortunately for the Pretty Boy, he not only must deal with Manny Pacquiao, but now also has to worry about a re-match with the man who came out of nowhere to expose him as human. Floyd needs to fight both Pacquiao and Maidana because he is still considered as ducking the Pac Man, and he looked vulnerable against El Chino. If there is anything that Floyd would despise most, and that all of the money in his bank account could not fix, is the fact that if he were to retire now, he will do so both ducking, and looking vulnerable. A warrior like Mayweather will not leave the game in this state. Only time will tell if these sure to be epic fights come to pass. If they do, then the boxing world will be in for two of the most memorable battles the fight game has ever seen.
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