SONAHR: May 4, 2014 – When he went into the ring at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas to face Floyd Mayweather Jr. on Saturday, Marcos Maidana may well have believed that his winning effort against Mayweather wannabe Adrien Broner in December provided proper preparation to face the fighter widely acknowledged to be the best in the business, pound-for-pound.
Instead Maidana learned, as the old Marvin Gaye-Tammi Terrell R & b song put it: �Ain�t nothin� like the real thing, baby. Ain�t nothin� like the real thing ��
While Broner had ultimately faltered under Maidana�s relentless pressure, Mayweather dug in and fought back, even when the Argentine strongman kept forcing Floyd to fight with his back against the ropes. And when the action moved to center ring, Mayweather was the star of the stage, though Maidana proved to be more than just a bit player.
Maidana, who held the WBA welterweight title going into the bout, gave WBC and Ring Magazine champion Mayweather his toughest battle since a rejuvenated Miguel Cotto roughed him up a few years ago in a losing effort. Mayweather�s victory on Saturday was certainly not a cakewalk, which is the only way to describe his wins last year over Robert Guerrero and Saul �Canelo� Alvarez.
Yet again, however, an errant scorecard spoiled the show. Judges Dave Moretti and Burt Clements had Mayweather winning handily by scores of 116-112 and 117-111 respectively. But Michael Pernick somehow tabbed it a draw at 114-114.
This is the second verdict in a row in which a judge saw a draw rather than a win for Mayweather. C.J. Ross�s 114-114 evaluation of Floyd�s rout of Canelo last year set a new standard for bad officiating, and the subsequent uproar probably played a role in Ross�s decision to step down as a fight judge.
Because Mayweather-Maidana was a lot closer than Mayweather-Alvarez, Pernick might well be excused for overestimating the effectiveness of Maidana�s aggression, and underestimating Mayweather�s ring generalship. Fortunately, the other judges saw the action much more clearly.
If Mayweather has lost a step at age 37, it didn�t show on Saturday night. If he had lost even a fraction of his skills, he would have lost the fight, as Maidana kept crowding him whenever he could. But Maidana could not keep Mayweather against the ropes long enough to weaken him, though he did land more punches to Floyd�s head and body than most of his other opponents have managed. But that still wasn�t enough, despite judge Pernick�s opinion.
So, what�s next for Mayweather? Well, two young guns are waiting in the wings of the welterweight ranks: Shawn Porter and Keith Thurman. Both men are crowd-pleasing punchers. But they are also novices compared to Mayweather, and at this point in their careers, they would absorb the same painful boxing lesson that Floyd meted out to Saul Alvarez.
There is only one fighter who can succeed in implementing the pressure tactics against Mayweather that Maidana did not have sufficient talent to sustain for the whole twelve rounds. That fighter is Manny Pacquiao.
All of a sudden, a Pacquiao-Mayweather showdown has become nearly as relevant as it would have been four years ago, when interest was at a fever pitch. Please, promoters � make this match. After all, �Ain�t nothin� like the real thing ��
Charles R. Saunders is the author of several books including Sweat and Soul: The Saga of Black Boxers in the Maritimes from the Halifax Forum to Caesars Palace, as well as the Imaro series of fantasy/adventure novels. Considered by many to be one of the leading authorities on boxing in Canada, he is the current Vice-President of Boxing for the Society of North American Sports Historians and Researchers. His award-winning novel, Damballa, which centers around a fictional heavyweight title bout, is available at Amazon.com.
