At some point in the vicinity of Australian eastern lunchtime on Sunday, Manny Pacquiao and Floyd “Money” Mayweather will meet in what they’re already calling the “fight of the century”.
This billing seemed to have a little more heft to it when they trotted it out for Ali v Frazier I. That was held in the early 1970s and most of the relevant century had strolled by at that point.
Nonetheless, it’s arguably boxing’s biggest deal since Holyfield and Tyson got dumped into a ring.
The problem for many is that they haven’t seen any really big boxing since Holyfield-Tyson ? Anthony Mundine’s career emphatically included. Advertisement
So how to effect an air of breezy fight-side familiarity for the big extravagutser?
The following may serve as a stunningly useless guide.
Manny Pacquiao ? champion of well over half of the weight classes in existence ? is the quite-short guy with the moustache and much in the way of hair.
He was a brawler who trainer Freddie Roach turned into a very canny counter-puncher/boxer, with uncannily hard, accurate and well-timed punches which, rather than just landing, seem inclined to detonate.
Floyd Mayweather ? still undefeated after all those years and jail time ? is the slightly taller quite-short guy with hardly anything in the way of hair.
He oozes class (between bells, for three-minute periods), but can mix in close with anyone, counter-punch like crazy, and, in general, knows what opponents will do before they get around to it ? a handy knack, in his profession.
They’ve both been extraordinarily good. Floyd would have likely won a few years back; now it’s a bit more of a pick-em.
However, like the fight commentators, just do a lot of yelling when everybody else does and you’ll make out fine.
