The fight isn’t any closer to being made now than it was when both fighters seemed on a collision path,
but even with Shane Mosley standing in Pacquiao’s way and a legal hearing standing in Mayweather’s,
fans and experts alike can’t resist the urge to explore the possibilities of this mega bout.
On paper, it’s a classic match-up– The frenetic, aggression of eight-division titlist, Manny Pacquiao, vs. the cool, calculated technical expertise of five-division titlist, Floyd Mayweather Jr. How can boxing’s top two pound for pound fighters pitted against one another be anything but monumental?
Despite Mayweather’s inactivity and legal problems and without regard to Pacquiao’s May 7th date with Shane Mosley, fans and experts can’t help but speculate on who, exactly, would win the biggest fight of this millennium.
Unfortunately for Pacquiao’s legion of worldwide fans, the vast majority of experts favor the boxer from Grand Rapids, Michigan over the warrior from General Santos City. Over the last several months, experts from all areas of the sport have been asked about this stellar contest and Mayweather is the clear favorite to come away with the hard-earned victory.
From the world of the internet boxing media, 23 of the 25 top boxing scribes gave the nod to Mayweather in a poll conducted by boxingnewsworld.com.
Among trainers, Mayweather has firm support from the likes of Ronnie Shields, Buddy McGirt, Teddy Atlas, Robert McCracken, Tony Morgan and Gabriel Sarmiento while Hall of Fame trainer, Emanuel Steward, called the fight a “coin toss.”
In the world of active pro fighters, Mayweather gets the nod in the expert opinions of Zab Judah, Juan Manuel Marquez, Carl Froch, Sergio Martinez, Paul Williams, Bernard Hopkins, Ivan Calderon, Marco Antonio Barrera, Timothy Bradley, Antonio Tarver, and Arthur Abraham.
Promoters Don King and Frank Warren see Mayweather conquering Manny.
Among retired legends, Oscar del la Hoya, Mike Tyson, Ricky Hatton, Carlos Palomino, Barry McGuigan, and Israel Vazquez also favor Mayweather.
Even respected media-types, Larry Merchant, Nick Charles, and Max Kellerman can’t pick against Floyd.
Perhaps more telling, though, is the fact that their three common opponents: De la Hoya, Hatton, and
Marquez all said that Mayweather was the better fighter of the
two.
To be fair, Manny has more than his share of knowledgeable supporters, including Joe Goosen, Naazim Richardson, Robert Garcia, and Angelo Dundee. However, most respected experts are fully behind Mayweather winning a close, but solid decision over the Filipino Phenom.
Of course, fights are fought in the ring and not in the hypothetical world of boxing pundits, so everything is really a guess, albeit an educated guess, until the two finally meet in the middle of the ring.
Whether you blame Mayweather, Pacquiao or both for the proposed fight falling apart, the fact is that the buzz around this mega bout will just not go away until the debate gets resolved where it counts– in the squared circle. But, as it stands now, the only real question to be asked is: When, if ever, will the fans be rewarded for their patience?
