IS the current pound-for-pound champion of the sport ripe for the taking? So says Robert Guerrero of Floyd Mayweather Jr.
According to ?The Ghost?, he has seen signs of slippage that he can capitalize on to secure victory in their May 4 encounter.
This Last Rounder shares his opinion that the ?Pretty Boy? has indeed lost some of the energies of his youth, but as to whether or not Guerrero is the fighter to beat him is an entirely different matter.
THE GHOST. Guerrero currently owns a record of 31-1, 18KOs and is fresh from a brilliant unanimous decision win over Andre Berto last November.
He also own wins over Michael Katsidis, Vicente Escobedo and Joel Casamayor.
Guerrero adopts an aggressive take-no- prisoners approach, throwing voluminous punches as he comes forward. His southpaw stance complements his feral tactics as he is willing to go to war every single time.
In his last fight, he tore through Berto?s defenses, including those moments when Berto adopted the shoulder roll defense which is the foundation of Mayweather?s style.
This is probably the reason why Guerrero has expressed supreme confidence in beating Mayweather.
SIGNS. Nobody outwits father time and yes, that includes even the timeless and ageless Bernard Hopkins.
Though still effective at 48 years of age, Hopkins has radically transformed his style to better suit his waning capabilities and same holds true for Floyd Jr.
It may not be as apparent but yes, the signs of the elegiac decline have been there and I?m sure you saw them too.
The most impactful would have to be those booming right hands landed by Shane Mosely in 2010 that buckled Floyd Jr?s knees.
Or perhaps the fact that a past-his- prime Miguel Cotto gave Floyd a couple of good rounds, landing his fair share of punches.
In any case, Floyd is not the fighter he once was when he dismantled Diego Corrales, Zab Judah or Ricky Hatton.
He doesn?t move around as much as prefers to deflect his opponent?s blows behind his patented shoulder roll defense.
Floyd has become increasingly reliant on technique and skill rather than speed, but who?s to say that makes him a weaker fighter?
At the end of the day, styles still make fights and I think Guerrero?s instinctive, percussive line of attack is tailor-made for the ?Pretty Boy.?
He will probably make it interesting for the first half of the fight, until Floyd takes over and dominates him to a unanimous decision victory.
FIGHTS. There a couple of interesting duke-outs on our plate today. First is the battle for the IBF junior lightweight belt between Kendall Holt and Lamont Peterson.
Peterson is coming off a long layoff after defeating Amir Khan via split decision in 2011. Holt is a former WBO champ trying to get his career back on track after losses to Tim Bradley and Danny Garcia.
The winner could be a potential opponent for Juan Manuel Marquez or Manny Pacquiao anytime this year.
Then at UFC 157, Dan Henderson and Lyoto Machida face each other in the main supporting bout for the women?s bout between Liz Carmouche and Ronda Rousey for the UFC Women?s Bantamweight belt.
Those of you who follow this column know how I feel about women?s boxing. But I will reserve my judgment when it comes to MMA since the focus is not solely on punching.
On the periphery, two fighters who participated in ?The Contender? reality TV series, Ishe Smith and Cornelius Bundrage face off.
I?m a huge fan of both fighters with their exciting styles. This one?s bound to end abruptly and concussively.
HE SAID IT. ?If he says he needs to keep going to pay for the politics, I will tell him that?s the wrong reason, [But] if it is because he still wants to and loves it, that?s the right reason.? –Freddie Roach (www.manilatimes.net)
LAST ROUNDS. Are on Atty. Oscar Tan Jr. and Atty. Astrox Canama who celebrate their birthdays this week. Cheers!
