Behind The Gloves Staff Predictions: Floyd Mayweather-Marcos Maidana

Behind The Gloves Staff Predictions: Floyd Mayweather-Marcos Maidana

Floyd Mayweather and Marcos Maidana face off this Saturday in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Garden Arena for the WBC and WBA welterweight titles. “The Moment”, as this event is billed, presents Mayweather, the effortless master, against Maidana, the rugged Argentinian slugger who ended Adrien Broner‘s perfect record.

Is Floyd (45-0) making a dangerous gamble against the dangerous offense and strength of Maidana, (35-3) or will he employ his superior skills, make him appear wild, ungainly and ineffectual?

Once again, light heavyweight title challenger and trainer “Iceman” John Scully offered an expert analysis for Behind The Gloves.

“In Floyd,” Scully said, “I see an extremely well rounded champion, who is probably quite a bit tougher than he’s given credit for, or that most people realize, because he hasn’t actually had to show it in a real fight yet. And he may never have to show how tough he is, but I do believe he is. He’s been able to stay on cruise control most of his fights, and beat his opponents, with style and finesse. That’s his game, and he sticks with it with success.” And Maidana, Scully acknowledged, is tough. “He’s a rough and tough, no nonsense guy,” Scully said, “but he is also I believe, much smarter in there than he may get credit for. You don’t compete and win at that level just by throwing hard punches and being tough- you have to at least have some subtle skills that get the job done.”

For Maidana to get the job done against Floyd Mayweather, Scully regards confidence as a major factor. “One thing Maidana has going for him,” Scully explained, “is that he is on a career high right now with the Broner win. He is also motivated because this is literally the opportunity of a lifetime. A chance to hit the Powerball of boxing,” he said, and continued. “A guy who truly believes in himself and in his determination is dangerous for a guy like Mayweather to fight, because in many ways, Marcos has nothing at all to lose. As long as he puts up a decent showing, he is still going to be recognized as a force in the division, but I know he wants more than that. He feels like he is right there, so close, on the brink of becoming THE MAN. It’s hard to hold a guy off when he’s feeling like that.” As the guy with everything to lose, Scully sees Floyd remaining steadfast in what has been successful throughout his career. “Mayweather adjusts as well as or better than anyone in the game right now,” he said. “He steps up at just the right moments, and I believe that will once again be the same story.”

Unexpected plot twists are not uncommon in boxing. Upsets happen, and Maidana engineered one defeating Broner. Does Floyd possess any glaring flaws that can lead to a Maidana win? Scully is doubtful. “I really don’t think so,” he said. “From what I’ve seen and heard, Floyd’s level of preparedness is on such a superior level that with his skills and experience, it’s going to take a Herculean effort to beat him. Most boxers train very hard, but when you get a superior athlete and technician, and he also trains as hard or harder than anyone else, it’s a hard combination to overcome.” Given Floyd’s innate skill and “hard work, dedication” could Maidana create the opportunity to defeat Floyd? “The best chance,” Scully answered, “would be to catch Floyd in a situation where he didn’t feel a huge threat, and didn’t train 100 percent, without full commitment. But, by the same token, I don’t think that will ever the the situation with Floyd.” Still, Scully insisted, he’s opposing someone who should never be taken lightly. “My thing is this the subtle skills and underrated technique and tenacity of Maidana. You can never, ever dismiss or overlook intangibles like those.”

Anticipating “The Moment”, Scully offered his view of how the fight will unfold. “I see this fight being a little more exciting than the average Floyd Mayweather fight,” he said. “I think Marcos will surprise Floyd by getting through to him a bit with some nice shots, especially to the body. I think Marcos will be in it deeply for the first few rounds but by no later than the midway point Floyd will be in his usual control. I expect a lot of clean pot shots from the outside to get in after the halfway point. And a unanimous decision win by Floyd Mayweather.”

-Amy Green / @amygreenpr

-Contributor to www.BehindTheGloves.com

Alex Aviles:

I don’t feel like there’s much to be said about this fight except that I expect to see a few counter lead-in rights land clean a ridiculous amount of times. Maidana will try to pressure Floyd in the early going only to abandon his game plan by round three or four after realizing that Mayweather isn’t like Adrien Broner at all. Of course, there’s the same buzzword’s used over and over when describing the chances of Mayweather’s recent opponent’s, that being that they have a “punchers chance”. I do feel like Maidana will have some Victor Ortiz-like moments from his clash with Floyd 3 years ago in this fight. You know the moments where he seems to be landing a barrage of punches but in actuality landed 10% of them, which is enough to have the fans at the MGM go completely bonkers. Sure, anything can happen in this crazy sport known as the sweet science but expect Floyd to go 46-0 here.

John Dyer:

Maidana needs to stick to his plan, and not try to outbox mayweather the way Canelo did. I see maidana doing just that, making this a dirty fight and using his forearm to keep him on the ropes. Mayweather will adjust and win. Highlight of the fight will be when maidana has some early success, but counter punching will destroy him.

Floyd stops Maidana – Round 10.

Rick Guerrero:

I have thought through this matchup several times and the same outcome keeps coming back….Mayweather by KO, as crazy as that may seem especially since Marcos Maidana has never been KO’d ; although he has been down several times in his career. It’s been just over six years since Money has had a KO when he beat Ricky Hatton by TKO (Victor Ortiz fight notwithstanding). Going back several fights, Floyd has stunned his opponents on several occasions. I recall several instances where he stunned Alvarez, Guerrero, and Cotto and it almost seemed like he could have done more damage. Speed is power and Floyd has one of the quickest counters in the game. It’s no mystery what Maidana will do; he will come straight forward and throw power punches; however, he is not the most accurate puncher and Floyd is not Adrien Broner. This type of strategy will play right into Floyd’s web where he will use his legendary shoulder roll, slip a few bombs from Maidana and then bang, lights out. A right counter or left check hook, similar to the shot that put Hatton out will be the money maker..no pun intended. Mayweather 8th Round KO.

Oun Abbas Hussain:

I think the Mayweather fight is a forgone conclusion for me. As Maidana has no speed, think it will be a easy day in the office for Money Mayweather. It’ll be a routine win as Mayweather will just pick his shots perfectly and leave Maidana frustrated like the Canelo fight. Mayweather too clever for him and I see a UD win for him.

The Khan fight is a intriguing one. Moving up to 147 is going to be new experience. As long as he doesn’t go to war with Collazo, boxes sensibly, and keeps his chin tucked in then Khan wins on points for me. It’s always intriguing seeing the new Khan under Virgill Hunter. If he can perfect the balance between offense and defense, then he can become a worthy fighter in the welterweight division. I can see knock downs and excitement in this fight. Broner will beat Carlos Molina by knock-out as I think it is a bit of a mismatch but suppose Broner needs to reeled back in slowly after the Maidana loss.

Qasim Hussain:

Broner-Molina. After a slow start, I see Broner picking his shots all night & using his quick feet to move around the ring unlike the Maidana fight. However a tough Molina will stand in and go to the judges scorecard. Broner UD

Khan-Collazo. I see Khan shooting straight out the block and punishing Collazo from the off. His hand speed & footwork will be to much for Collazo. Luis will have a later rally in the end however it will be to little, to late. Khan UD

Floyd-Maidana. The first few rounds will be of Maidana throwing a flurry of punches with little succession. As soon as Floyd adapts to his awkward shots, I feel as though he will stay in
the centre and beat Marcos to the punch. He will break him down slowly and go in for the kill in round 11. Floyd 11KO

Ashley Knott:

Marcos Maidana is going into the biggest fight of his life as a sitting duck for Floyd Mayweather Jr according to most fans and experts and it is hard to disagree. He is pedestrian, obvious and been hurt by lesser men. Maidana has secured this fight after upsetting the odds, beating and beating up the apparent heir to the Mayweather throne, Adrien Broner, but in hindsight was it really that much of an upset in the history of boxing upsets? The one punch he can take from that fight was the wide hooks brought up from the waistline against the shoulder roll defence, if he can land that, you never know. However, he is now up against somebody who has perfected that style and not merely moulding it.

Mayweather has developed a devilish disguise in his right hand, similar to the right hand B-Hop has been popping in his senior years, it’s not a telegraphed shot and Maidana with his come forward style will be wide open to it and not quick enough to defend it, it’s the shot that I think will land consistently for Floyd. I see a similar fight to Devon Alexander vs Maidana, Maidana may be more motivated for this fight and if he lands something big he is a relentless puncher so there is always that chance but it’s a small one. I just cannot see past a dominant Mayweather victory in either late knockout fashion or a very wide points win.

David Lopez:

Unfortunately I think this is a pretty easy fight for Floyd. I hope im wrong and we get an action packed, exciting fight. I see this fight similar to Floyd vs. Hatton but Maidana will have less success than Hatton. Maidana will never stop coming forward as long as he is on his feet. He will give Floyd tons of counter punching opportunities. I think Floyd is still at the top of his game and he stops Maidana between the 8th and 10th round with brilliant counter punching and he will do very good body work in this fight also.

Stephen Lynch:

Floyd Mayweather is the sport’s standard bearer and will conceivably be a hot favourite whoever he’s facing. Maidana will be coming to fight, but I’m sure every opponent since De La Hoya (with the possible exception of Marquez and Cotto) has had a similar mentality. Only Canelo Alvarez seemed to come into the fight with the colossal naivety that he was going to outbox the P4P kingpin. Studying Mayweather to develop a gameplan and having to implement it in reality are two different things and recent opponents have been introduced to this reality early on in their challenges.

Don’t be surprised though if Maidana catches Floyd early and possibly hurts or knocks him down. I expect a similar fight to Mayweather v Hatton in 2007.

Mayweather by TKO.

David McIntosh:

This should be a good fight, but then again, everyone thought the same when Floyd fought Canelo and Guerrero last year. Although Maidana proved his power against Broner and showed he can beat a classy opponent, we can’t compare Broner to Mayweather, not even for a second. Without taking anything away from Maidana on that night, he fought a fighter in a lower weight division, Broner isn’t a natural welterweight.

Mayweather possesses a defensive ability like no other, and even when he’s up against hard hitters, he still manages to keep them at bay and control the pace. Maidana will no doubt try and rough Floyd up and he could be successful throughout he fight like Cotto was, but I predict Floyd scoring a stoppage win this weekend. People will class this as an easy fight for Floyd, but he should be given credit if he manages to stop an opponent who hasn’t been stopped once in his 10 year career.

Bradley Pearson:

Golden Boy/Showtime are really going for the hard sale on this fight, trying to convince us that the 12/1 dog Maidana genuinely has a shot of dethroning the best fighter in the sport.

Maidana, a guy that was dropped by Khan, Lopez, in dog fights with Morales, doesn’t convince me. I think the punch that will define the fight will be Floyd’s jab to the body which he commits to, really sticking it to the gut of his opponent. It sets up right hands upstairs and I can see him slowly breaking Chino down using it.

I see Mayweather standing in the pocket with Maidana after a few rounds of measuring him from range. Rolling his wild shots and countering up the middle. The second Floyd begins pushing him back the fight is over. The most accurate fighter in the sport will tattoo a guy as hittable as Maidana all night and I don’t think it goes 12 either.

Mayweather TKO in the mid-to-championship rounds.

Federico Perez:

Maidana will push from the start and attack the body , as did Jose Luis Castillo in 2002, a fight that many experts saw Castillo as the winner, Floyd will use his experience to counter the attack of Maidana, I think that there will be no knockdowns,close fight, Floyd by SD12

Martin Perry:

Mayweather boxes on the move, frustrating Maidana in the process. As Maidana gets tired and desperate, Mayweather is able more and more to counter at will with his excellent hand speed and timing. A knockdown or stoppage is not out of the question, but most likely a wide points win for Mayweather.

Jay Quintero:

This fight reminds me of Mayweather’s bouts with Arturo Gatti and Ricky Hatton. When Mayweather is in the ring against a brawler, he is at his complete best. Plain and simple, Maidana is easy to hit. Mayweather is coming his most masterful performance since the Hatton fight and has not showed any signs of his age becoming a disadvantage for him.
In my opinion, the closest Maidana will come to beating Mayweather will be by beating Adrien Broner in a rematch — “Cuz he’s the closest thing to him.”

Mayweather by TKO.

Dominic Rowan:

I was one of those who back in September of last year thought that Canelo Alvarez could and would beat Floyd Mayweather if he made the weight correctly and got his game plan spot on. Ultimately the young Mexican was schooled by the pound-for-pound King and the Money Team rolled on to 45-0, with the elusive ‘blueprint’ nowhere to be seen.

No-one has given Marcos Maidana much of a chance for Saturday’s fight and he seems to have slipped beneath the radar somewhat, at least here in the UK. A fighter like Maidana – who seems to have carried his power up to welterweight – will always have a puncher’s chance of causing an upset, and his most recent win against Adrien Broner highlights how effective he can be once he’s swarming his opponent up close. Maidana will have to produce the fight of his life to beat Mayweather, and hope that ‘father time’ has caught up with the unbeaten WBC champion.

Ultimately though, I can’t see that happening. Floyd will do what Floyd has always done; roll with the punches and pick his opponent off to clock up the rounds whilst they waste precious energy. However I do think there’s a high chance that Maidana will catch Mayweather with a shot that sends the American into a mini-crisis, but he’s dealth with them before and its hard to see Mayweather being troubled for very long. My prediction is therefore for Mayweather to win on points, somewhere around 117-111.

Sean Ryder:

It’s always a treat to see Mayweather’s supreme boxing skills, but I can’t get excited about a potential threat from Maidana. Maidana is made for Mayweather. Sure, Maidana will try and put the pressure on from the first bell and may well win the first couple through workrate alone. However, once Mayweather finds his unrivaled defensive movement to allow him to counter with laser-like and heart-taking accuracy, I’m convinced of it being a relatively easy night’s work. Whether it’s a wide points victory or a stoppage, will depend on how much punishment Maidana wants to take before becoming gun-shy for fear of the stiff counter. Mayweather UD 118-110

Satbir Sahdra:

I think Floyd Mayweather will put on another master class of display against Maidana. I think in the early rounds, Maidana will try apply some pressure to Mayweather and Mayweather will go to the ropes and use his defence and counter punch back and frustrate Maidana. In the later rounds, I predict Floyd will apply the pressure and try to go for the stoppage. However I am not counting Maidana’s punching power at all, he may be able to hurt Mayweather and anything can happen when a boxer is in with a puncher.

Chris Sena:

In my opinion Maidana will force Mayweather out of his comfort zone and show us a side of Floyd that we have not yet seen. Floyd’s age will be his weakness. Maidana by stoppage.

Terence Strawson:

I expect Mayweather to shoulder roll and pot-shot his way to victory. There may be a storm to weather early on, as Maidana will adopt the same game plan that served him so well against Broner. However, Maidana is tailor made for Mayweather. And, if you can’t beat Kotelnik, Khan or Alexander, you can’t beat Mayweather. Mayweather UD

Final tally: 17 for Floyd Mayweather, 1 for Marcos Maidana (with IceMan Scully picking Mayweather)