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Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Mayweather as Pacifism's Boxer

      Regarding the dissatisfaction with the fight which is pretty widespread-the general sentiment is I paid $100 for this?!-I think it's a function of Mayweather's style-and Manny Pacquiao's failure  to in any way throw off this style.

     http://diaryofarepublicanhater.blogspot.com/2015/05/mayweather-pacquiao-marketing-job-of.html

     This is simply how Mayweather fights. Look I certainly prefer slugfests but that's not Mayweather-his fights are pitcher's duels. The problem is that no one has ever been able to get him out of his element.

     One thing he said in his full access with Stephen A Smith was that he is greater than Ali. Of course, Skip Bayless and many others took issue with that. One thing that Mayweather clearly seems to lack is any reverence for history or the greats-that even Mike Tyson certainly always had.

     I would argue that Mayweather fights like a woman-and part of this is this lack of historical perspective. He is pure passive resistance; remember passive resistance is still resistance and resistance is just another mode of aggression.

     I have to say that Skip did himself a disservice by buying into Manny's absurd claim that he won that fight. Skip said something that is just not true-that the decision should always go to the aggressor.

    No, if you look at boxing history, this is not the case. Every boxing match has an the aggressive-'masculine' fighter-and a resistance-'feminine'-fighter. Both kinds of fighters can win and we've had many great fighters of both types.

    Whether or not there is any truth in the idea that Mayweather is better than Ali, Ali too was not the aggressor in the ring. Stephen A made the crucial point yesterday that nothing is more demoralizing to a fighter than not being able to land any punches. Remember that 'No mas' moment?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_gmZn9YlXs

    In their first fight, Sugar Ray made the mistake of playing Robert Duran's game-the aggressor. In the second match he frustrated Duran into quitting via passive resistance.

   Mayweather's style is passive resistance to the extreme-just like Mike Tyson was active aggression to the extreme. People many not like Mayweather fights-which invariably go 12 rounds where he wins based on points. But everyone felt ripped off by Tyson as well-remember his 90 second win over
Spinks?

   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbalbNetgUQ

   It's certainly fair to doubt Mayweather's claim to being greater than Ali. If boxing was like other sports where he didn't pick his own opponents would he still be 48-0? Arguably this could have been a better fight if they hadn't waited 5 years for it. If boxing were like other sports-with actual rules, a commissioner, etc.-maybe it would be better. As it is, there's like one big fight every 8 years-and this one, like so many, totally disappointed.

   P.S. In any case, Manny was a very feeble aggressor. He not only connected on 67 fewer punches, but he even threw fewer.

 

   

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