Although he is retired (although it’s apparent few truly believe he is) superstar Floyd Mayweather Junior continues to make the news on a regular basis. Now a promoter, the 39-year-old all time great recently closed the door with a slam on a rematch with Manny Pacquiao; a pointless and unneeded return in the opinion of not only Mayweather but all those fans who have not forgotten how one-sided, and dull, the May 2015 fight was.
And it was while talking about how happy he is as a promoter and how content he is with how his career played out (49-0 of course) that “Money” explained just why he became the smart defensive fighter he is best known – for good or for bad- for being. There was a time when Mayweather, when he was known as “Pretty Boy,” delivered plenty of pretty knockout wins/stoppages (see his destruction of Diego Corrales, and of Arturo Gatti).
It was after the 2005 win over Gatti that Mayweather’s transformation from “knockout artist” to “smart defensive fighter” took place – so said Floyd during an interview that took place as he was promoting the January fight between Badou Jack and James DeGale. Mayweather said that his style of fighting simply had to change after the Gatti stoppage win, as his body was “breaking down.”
“When I was fighting I beat these guys without using my A game or my B game. Before my body started breaking down, I was a knockout artist,” Mayweather told the media. “The last time I was a knockout artist it was against Arturo Gatti. But boxing takes its toll on you. I was happy I was a smart defensive, sharp fighter and mentally dominant and made smart moves.”
Mayweather’s critics, of which there are plenty, soured on “Money” when he failed to get the stoppage, or even try for it, against fighters like Carlos Baldomir, Oscar De La Hoya and Juan Manuel Marquez. But with brittle hands, shoulder problems and other ailments that set about breaking down his body, is it really any wonder Floyd’s KO win ratio started to shrink? Plenty of other fighters lost, amongst other things, their ability at getting their opponent outta there in the latter stages of their careers (see George Foreman, who, as an older fighter, was unable to flatten the likes of Crawford Grimsley and Lou Savarese).
Mayweather’s career endured at a time when he was well into mid and late-30s due to the fact that Floyd was smart enough to alter his style. If you want to see KO’s, look up some of Mayweather’s fights at 130, 135 and 140-pounds. If you want to see boxing skill, brains and masterful defensive qualities, look up Mayweather’s later fights, at 147 and 154.
Was Mayweather a boring fighter? No, he was just a clever boxer who was once a knockout artist. Regarding Mayweather’s one-time punching ability, ask guys like Angel Manfredy, Emanuel Augustus, Phillip N’dou and Ricky Hatton how stiffly he punched.