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MAYWEATHER-MAIDANA: MONUMENTAL OR MIRAGE? By Chris Carlson PhilBoxing.com Fri, 02 May 2014  We know Marcos Maidana will have his moments when facing Floyd Mayweather but will he have enough of them to get his hand raised. Mayweather is once again a heavy favorite heading into Saturday night's scrap so the real question outta be will the paying customer get a bang for their bucks. Along with the main event I will preview and predict the undercard fights that include big names like Amir Khan and Adrien Broner. With so few weaknesses inside the ring for Floyd Mayweather, it's very difficult to pick against him. When my mainstream boxing fan friends ask me about an upcoming Mayweather fight I?m often left talking about how entertaining it will be rather than convincing them that he will lose. When push comes to shove or until we get the Manny Pacquiao or Sergio Martinez matchup, the only thing we're left wondering and hoping that each opponent brings a winning, not surviving mentality as Mayweather approaches Rocky Marciano?s record. And based off Chino's body of work there?s a good chance that Mayweather will be forced to work for 12 full rounds. Besides the Devon Alexander hit and clinch fest, Maidana has brought a warrior's spirit win, loss, or draw to all of his fights from the time he hit the ground running versus Victor Ortiz, who at that point was groomed to be the next Golden Boy. Floyd has made easy work of his opponents the last few years excluding Miguel Cotto and the 2nd round in his fight with Shane Mosley. In 2007, Ricky Hatton and Oscar De La Hoya pushed Floyd until he made the correct adjustments dominating the later stages of both fights. Mayweather is a beacon of consistency as a masterful boxer who can box beautifully on the outside or stand right in front of a fighter without taking many a clean punch, yet able to counter with blistering hand speed. If you want a war on the inside Mayweather has shown numerous times in his career that he will oblige when met with rough housing, giving his opponents and rival trainers plenty to chew on when attempting to devise a game plan. Mayweather has given us no real reason to speculate about him not being fully focused on the task at hand. Until he proved otherwise we can assume he will show up ready as ever come Saturday Night in Las Vegas in his home away from home, the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Marcos Maidana is head full of steam come forward fighter who has recently shown some improvement that could pay dividends if he trusts his corner and developing skill. We don't know how good Maidana can be in the near future. I do believe Robert Garcia when he says that Chino is a different fighter than the one that took a points loss in a lackluster performance against the former two division champion Devon Alexander. Robert Garcia and Marcos Maidana have been together for almost two years and the improvements under his tutelage may be subtle to the untrained eye. The most obvious change was the jab that Maidana came out using like new toy or a kid in a candy store in his war against Jesus Soto Karass. The jab has become so effective now that Maidana has been aiming for the body with it allowing him to add a faint that turns into a lead looping left hook. As previously mentioned, Alexander was able to smother Maidana and with the ref not enforcing a holding penalty that alone played a major factor to earn an ugly win for Devon. Adrien Broner tried to bear hug hold when he was hurt and was only somewhat successful. It was clear that Maidana had learned how to better deal with the inside clinch. He used his elbows as a warning shot to the neck many times when Broner clinched. One time he was in a tight wrestling type hold and used his head to get out, something the referee rightfully called. The point is he was much quicker to avoid a clinch and used his free hand to attack the body, another skill he will need to defeat or at the very least compete with Floyd Mayweather. Can Maidana chop his way to victory is another key question to this fight? By chop I'm referring to Chino's overhand right that has improved as well to go along with setting the table for his offense with a jab. He is awkwardly accurate with that overhand right and has found a method of landing it in a variety of angles. He sort of throws it and then is able to aim at a moving target. A delayed punch could be his version of a side arm pitcher who doesn't come near 90 mph but is still able to keep up with top pitchers with cannons for arms. If Maidana can land that overhand right to the temple, forehead, on top or the side of the Floyd?s head, it could be the moment that changes this fight. With all his improvements as a fighter Maidana is still slow footed, often throws wide punches, and leaves his body exposed with a high guard. He will never be mistaken for a Willy Pep type but he must move his head and upper body if he wants any chance to sustain his offense. Floyd Mayweather has promised that he will be right in front Maidana with no game plan other than to slip shots and counter back. It could be he is saying that for PPV sales, just like his it may be my last fight statements he's made in the last few days. Or it could be what he saw in the Broner fight when Adrien was able to wear down Marcos at times by pushing the pace. Clearly going backwards is not Maidana's strength and he will have to live up to promise to push Floyd back from the opening bell. The boxer vs. puncher style matchup when fought at the top levels historically favors the boxer. That being said I think both men will make good on their words before this event. Maidana's style, recent upgrades in his camp combined with a warrior heart makes this Showtime PPV main event very entertaining and a somewhat competitive tilt. At some point Floyd will have to be first in order to stall or make Maidana more hesitant to throw combinations. Surprisingly Maidana fared well versus Broner in portions of their fight that took place in the middle of the ring. Can Marcos make May 3 a monumental moment or will it be just a mirage? Maidana will find an abundance of confidence from the fact the he has at least competed with fighters that have top flight hand speed. Amir Khan, Adrien Broner, Devon Alexander, and Victor Ortiz all have very good too elite hand speed with pop. Sparring with someone who can at least emulate Mayweather's shoulder roll defense would be great. But to actually fight and be successful against Adrien Broner speaks volumes on how prepared Chino is to perform up to his capabilities. This fight will be explosive and feature enough two way rounds to feel like we got our money's worth in this PPV headliner. Mayweather will hurt Chino but not enough to stop the fight early. My official prediction is Floyd Mayweather by Unanimous Decision. More than likely we won't get an upset in the main event but the undercard is solid with two fights that should be highly competitive. Adrien Broner is in a showcase type fight with the Carlos Molina who is not in jail no matter what Jim Lampley and other people say in the press. They only question of interest will be how Broner reacts mentally after the brutal beating by the hands Marcos Maidana. The co-feature is a scintillating match up that has crossroad fight written all over it. Luis Collazo's window of opportunity to seize "The Moment" is defiantly closing. Both men have been in rebuilding mode with Collazo doing his building in the ring with a nice win over Alan Sanchez and most recently a 2nd round KO of Victor Ortiz, and Amir Kahn doing most of his work behind closed doors in the gym. Just how much and what can be changed with Amir Khan's fighting style? A style that has made Khan a can?t miss fighter for boxing fans and the combatants that share the ring with him. If we do see a change or a new Khan it will be in the tiny details. If Khan were to simply throw less 5-6 punches combos and more 2-3 punches combos could have dramatically change a few fights in his career. He must learn to stay focuses on his strengths and a game plan of getting in and out of the pocket on offense. His footwork, inside fighting, and overall defense all need lots of work. Luis Collazo has the skill and will to make this a very long or short night for Amir Khan. I agree with the angle of Khan not getting the fight with Mayweather is the best thing for him at this point. Okay maybe Khan potentially losing out on his biggest payday will not be the best thing for him and his family. He does need to gain the kind of the confidence that comes from proving it in the ring. Every time Khan has had Floyd on the tip of his tongue before a fight he has lost or given a lackluster effort. I'm not afraid to admit like I have in the past that I still don't know who will win this fight as I write this article. Collazo has proven that he can time and counter fast fighters like Andre Berto. He has also shown a good chin and the toughness it will take to withstand the onslaught of punishment that he will have to walk through in order to come out victorious. My hunch is this fight will steal the show and give the well deserving fight fans something to rave about on social media. The biggest change that may ultimately be the reason why Amir Khan wins will be his patience and focus to still stay busy without being overly aggressive. My official prediction is Amir Khan by Majority Decision. The start to this PPV card will not be the run of the mill prospect scoring a quick KO that boxing fans have become all to accustom too in the last 6-8 years. Nope this JLeon Love vs. Marco Antonio Periban fight could be the most compelling fight of the night. Say what you want about Floyd Mayweather, one thing you can?t argue is the majority of his young prospects get matched in real fights. Many pundits and fans including Gabriel Rosado, who made it known on twitter that he is sick of JLeon Love being forced fed to the public on Mayweather Promotions PPV undecards, have complained about this fight. Sorry but I just don't see why. This is a real fight that will answer questions for both fighters. Love is moving back up to 168 after moonlighting at middleweight. Periban has shown his worth as a solid contender with close fights against Sakio Bika and Badou Jack. I'm calling for a spirited fight with Love controlling the early to mid rounds and Periban's pressure to be a difference maker in the 2nd half. We could get the same result as we did a year ago when most though Gab Rosado did enough in the power department to win the fight. My official prediction is Marcos Antonio Perbian by split decision. All and all when you compare this PPV card to its predecessors from the last 7 or 8 years, boxing fans will get two back and forth fights and two violent filled fights that we will end up visually enjoying. Written by Chris Carlson Owner and Host of Rope A Dope Radio at www.blogtalkradio.com/ropeadoperadio Follow Chris on Twitter @RopeADopeRadio & http://ropeadoperadio.wordpress.com/ Click here to view a list of other articles written by Chris Carlson.  |
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