The American is remarkable but needs to beat Sugar Shane Mosley and Manny Pacquiao to confirm his greatness
Good as Floyd Mayweather Jr looked against Juan Manuel M?rquez – and sensational would be a reasonable description – he is two fights away from silencing the last of his critics.
For the unequivocal adoration he craves he must now go out and beat Sugar Shane Mosley and Manny Pacquiao, probably in that order. Of the two Mosley is the tougher fight because, as Mayweather showed in Las Vegas on Saturday night, size is a killer around the lighter weights.
Pacquiao, whatever his heroics against a shot Ricky Hatton in May, is two years younger than Mayweather but a stone or so smaller; Mosley is closer in weight, at light-middle, but six years older.
Mayweather, according to M?rquez, might have been 20lb heavier than the 36-year-old Mexican by fight time at the MGM Grand. He also had a four-year pull in age, not to mention skills which seem to have been enhanced rather than eroded since he knocked out Hatton in the same ring 21 months ago.
The man is remarkable, every bit as removed from the herd as was Sugar Ray Leonard, whom he resembles in boxing style and self-belief, although he lacks Leonard’s class outside the ring, which is not the unreserved praise it might seem; Leonard could be charming or unbearable.
Like Roy Jones Jr and Oscar De La Hoya before him Mayweather has secured his legend fighting a variety of older and/or smaller opponents, partly because he is an astute businessman and abhors risk, despite his immense talent, and partly because there are not many fighters out there who are an exact match for him.
At the weigh-in he was seemingly happy to pay a $600,000 penalty out of his $5m purse for coming in 2lb over the agreed 144lb limit; that was desperately unfair on M?rquez, who was coming up from lightweight. He was dwarfed in every way as Mayweather dominated him physically and tactically over 12 largely one-sided rounds.
M?rquez could make an argument for sharing the points only in round seven, when he had minor success as Mayweather relaxed. Afterwards Mayweather indulged in the luxury of describing his showing as not one of his best. Nonsense.
On ability and that performance there is no question he is the best fighter in the world right now. Wins over Mosley and Pacquiao would seal the judgment. And if anyone out there wants to challenge that, be my guest.
