As great as Floyd will be, and he will be great, you have been reliving this moment for what seems like all your life?
Dear Manny,
When you made your pro debut at age 16, you could never have expected this. How could you have ever dreamt up this scenario? The magnitude of the event. The hype. The hysteria. Don?t be fooled. Floyd may be the headliner, but this fight is about you because you made it about you. It?s about your passion for the sport and people (especially the thousands you won over), no matter who they are or where they come from. It?s about how, after all this time and all this success, you never really changed. Well, of course you have, but your purpose and drive never wavered.
Hard to fathom that after decades in a sport where your earliest fights seem like nothing more than old vignettes of another young prospect from another time, you never changed how you treat people. People remember that. But it is the performances that will be even harder to forget.
Remember when you floored Ricky Hatton, scolded Miguel Cotto, and left Oscar De La Hoya a shell of his former self? Or your systematic dismantling of Antonio Margarito? Years later and considerably past your prime, that same spirit and energy that you used to turn away the best fighters of your generation will be hard to resurrect again, right? Can you summon it up one more time in a virtuoso performance?
This time it?s Floyd Mayweather ? an entirely different beast. Ostensibly, Floyd has to deal with the same realities: he can?t dominate like he did against the younger, stronger Canelo, can?t counter with blistering combinations as he did against Diego Corrales, and he can?t bully like he did against Victor Ortiz and so many others. As blessed as Floyd is, his movement dictates the level of success he has. When Floyd can shift and move out of range for an entire 12 rounds, his opponent must reset and start over again. It?s exhausting for one round let alone 12 ? ask Canelo. But not you. When you cut off the ring against Cotto and then never threw fewer than 3-4 punch combinations during frequent attacks, it was masterful. Now, you may not have that same capability, but you can still use your own movement and speed to offset Floyd?s. So you won?t be chasing Floyd like Canelo did or succumbing to him in the late rounds like De La Hoya. No, you?ll attack, set traps, and then quietly break him down.
But Floyd can deal with adversity, and he will bait you. And if Floyd?s behind, he?ll come after you. When he backs in so effortlessly against the ropes, Floyd salivates as his opponent enters with reckless abandon. But you won?t do that because you have strategized for Floyd a thousand times in your head. You know every nuance of his style. You know that you will never get a clean shot on him against the ropes, so you will double up on hooks to the body like Cotto did (when he fought Mayweather) and sidestep to the right and throw that staple straight left hand. Or plug him up with jabs like Oscar did to get closer to him.
Mentally, fighting Floyd means engaging in tactical warfare, but no fighter is as mentally strong as you are. Floyd didn?t want to fight you for the same reason no other fighter did five years ago ? you take their hearts and then never let up. Floyd has never seen that blend of speed, power, and ring intelligence that you possess. Consequently, you have never faced anyone like Floyd ? so slick, so confident, and oh so dangerous.
As you know, anyone who faces Floyd must have multiple strategies. When that vicious right hand comes from different angles, it is nearly impossible to defend against. Yet, how will Floyd defend against your aggression, a type of aggression predicated on speed and power, not desperation (like so many of Floyd?s opponents).
As great as Floyd will be, and he will be great, you have been reliving this moment for what seems like all your life. Conversely, Floyd only recently reluctantly accepted that you were a realistic opponent.
So when the bell rings on Saturday, the love that you feel for yourself and your people, the passion you feel for the sport and the sacrifices you have made will all come out in one form ? attack mode. One that Floyd won?t be able to handle. In the places where only boxers, rivals, can go, you will ask yourself ? who was I on the biggest night of my life? The only answer will be ? the better man.
Prediction: Manny by unanimous decision after a magnificent tactical fight where Pacquiao asserts himself in the later rounds.
In the end, God can?t answer the questions that your fists already have.
