I must say that with the boxing event this evening, I was a bit disappointed. I saw, for really the first time, a diminished Mayweather inside the ring in a rematch with Marcos Maidana. The first fight was touted as a closely contested matchup with twists and turns that made for a compelling second encounter. I only saw a Mayweather that was pulling back on his offense and allowing a rough fight to validate filling in Marcos on another fight slot. I still feel correct in that assessment. However, in this rematch, all talk was supposed to be silenced and questions answered. If anything, I feel there are even more than there were to begin with.
Mayweather looked very old and slow by his standards to me. Many non-fighters and casual fans won't notice, but it was very reminiscent to Anderson Silva's slow decline. In elite fighters of that level, the deterioration is in milliseconds and stages. He looked very slow footed, and lazy in his offense at numerous times in the fight. I admire that he was able to clean it up a bit against a hungry, homerun seeking opponent, but all I could think of were future matches. He effectively countered Maidana late in the fight and on rare occasion opened up brief offensive combinations to the body and head. 1 or 2 body shots from Floyd the entire fight seemed to bother Maidana. Floyd cruised to an easy decision, but not at all in the way he promised.
2 things stand out to me. He had no power, and his offense was not consistent. This is a legendary guy who imposes whatever he wants in his fights. He specifically promised a domination or a knockout, and mid way into the fight, you knew it wasn't coming no matter what. He could not hurt Maidana to save his life. That worries me alot. He looked fat and out of shape compared to yesterday's weigh in's. I don't know what he ate that night, but he should never eat it again. Stamina wise, he didn't open distance between him and his opponent. If anything, for the first time, Mayweather looked more tired up until the very end. That's always been one of his supposed weapons. His foot work was good, but his defense opened up at times to where you could see him being caught by a faster opponent. In the end, he struggled to survive in a fight he promised to dominate. He was even hurt a few times which the media fails to acknowledge.
All I could think about at the end of this fight is the fight with Pacquiao and the fight with Amir Khan, that he as put off time and again. I always said that Mayweather's tactics may come back to get him in the long run, and I may be right. Those very 2 people he avoided, look like the very ones who could stop him right now. I've never said this before, but with tonight's performance, I could see the speed of Khan, and the overall ability of Pacman giving Mayweather worlds of trouble right now. And these fights with Marcos have taken a toll on an old fighter. These aren't the fights you take at the end of a career. Don't be surprised if Mayweather loses his next fight, and dramatically. I hope it doesn't happen, but he has pretty much set himself up. He promised a surprise in May. He lost money on the last fight and money along with fans on this rematch. He will be pressured into a big fight with Khan, Pacman, or Hopkins. All of those guys are capable of beating him now. He may have blew it by not fighting Pacman earlier. I look forward to seeing what happens next.
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