How to Beat a Mayweather

by Paul Magno

As Shane Mosley and Naazim Richardson prepare for the daunting task of trying to beat one of boxing's modern day masters, The Boxing Tribune has set out to aid the duo and help establish the blueprint for beating Floyd Mayweather.

No fighter is undefeatable and, while not an easy job at all, Mayweather is surely not invincible.

Sure, all of this is easier said than done, but the point is that it can be done...It's just going to take a hell of a fighter to put it all together:

It's not you, it's me

There is one major mistake trainers make when preparing for Floyd Mayweather- They put too much focus on Mayweather. They study tapes, dream up strategies and make plans to counter and befuddle Mayweather's unique style. I'm not saying that this is a bad thing. Mayweather opponents should familiarize themselves with Mayweather's style and trainers should come up with a proper strategy to nullify it.

But the answer to the Mayweather riddle doesn't lie within Floyd's steel trap defense or sharp focus. Frankly, there are no weaknesses to exploit, no glaring lapses in technique.

Instead of focusing on Floyd, a trainer would be better suited focusing on his own guy, making him sharp and as error-free as humanly possible. Taking a fighter and making him a flawless paragon of his own style is key.

Play the Angles

Mayweather employs the famous “shoulder roll” style that turns traditional boxing geometry into a null and void jumble of missed shots and uncomfortable angles.

Fighters learn their craft in 1-2 steps...Mayweather works on 1.5, 1.7, 2.3...Off to the side and always at odd angles, Mayweather is a mystery to most....and as the fight progresses and desperation sets in, that mystery deepens.

What anyone fighting Floyd has to understand is the basic logic taught to us in Geometry: The shortest distance between two points is a straight line.

The fighters who have success with Mayweather are those who can throw sharp, tight, straight punches. A sharp jab has been pointed to as a key to solving the riddle, but sharp, compact straight rights and lefts can also lead to success.

Swinging for the fences will lead to zero success against Floyd; Tight, straight compact shots, at the very least, will cut the distance and put some leather on Mayweather.

Waste not, Want not

Mayweather feasts on wasted movement. When his odd angles throw opponents off balance or his defensive stance forces foes to over-commit, his job becomes frighteningly easy; It's really just a matter of stepping off and unloading on off-balance, defenseless targets.

Make no mistake about it, if you overpursue, you will get pot-shot to death from a supremely quick-fisted and always in command Mayweather.

Fighters who have found success against Floyd have been mature, fundamentally sound boxers who don't burn through logic and reason by trying to take the fight to Mayweather. Instead, they focus on what they do best, stay within their own skill set and don't make a counter puncher's job easier by deviating off the script.

These are the types of fighters who make Mayweather's life miserable. These are the guys who Mayweather, in order to ensure the victory, has to go after and beat rather than just wait for exploitable errors to take advantage of.

The “Money” Mayweather of 2010 has become spoiled and has relied too much on being so much more fundamentally sound and technically superior to his opposition; He hasn't been made to force the issue against a fighter who simply refuses to give Floyd anything to exploit and counter.

Jose Luis Castillo, Oscar De la Hoya and Zab Judah are examples of fighters who “wasted not” and, as a result, gave Mayweather some of his closest battles.

“Think Buddha”

“There is nothing more dreadful than the habit of doubt... It is a thorn that irritates and hurts; it is a sword that kills.” -- The Buddha

To beat Mayweather, one has to focus on the here and now. You have to take each exchange as it comes and focus on doing the right thing on a case by case basis.

Be fundamentally sound, don't waste punches or movement, keep punches short and straight, make Mayweather take the intiative and make him pay for every exchange you get into...Those are the nuts and bolts keys to beating Floyd Mayweather.

The psychological key to the entire task, though, may be just as vital. Anyone fighting Mayweather will be frustrated and demoralized at times...The secret is being strong enough to push those moments aside and focus on the big picture.

Beating Mayweather is no easy task and it becomes increasingly more difficult when doubt begins to creep in and affect the sharpness of a fighter's performance. Mayweather's vanquisher will focus on winning rounds and will have the maturity to put the setbacks aside, little by little, taking the fight away from Floyd and forcing him to deviate from the script.

“A jug fills drop by drop.” -- The Buddha

This Saturday, May 1^st, we'll see if Shane Mosley has the mental and physical goods to handle this huge task.

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Junior Welterweights On The Rise

by Dafs117

Dominated by Ricky Hatton, the light welterweight division has been a snoozer for the past few years, especially in comparison to its talent-rich neighbours north and south. But all of a sudden, the junior welterweight class is booming with exciting up-and-coming fighters such as Timothy Bradley, Amir Khan and Devon Alexander. They’ve all won an alphabet title in the past twelve months, and all could have a decent claim for the top spot in the division by the end of 2010, which is currently held by Bradley.

Add Marcos Rene Maidana and Juan Urango to the mix, two all action power punching fighters that put everything on the line with their one-track minds. Update the wildcards; Nate Campbell, Joel Casamayor and Andriy Kotelnik, all crafty fighters that can easily be underestimated. Flashy fighters such as Paulie Malignaggi, Zab Judah and The BTBC’s 140 pound House Fighter, Lamont Peterson can cause a stir at 140 pounds and have a strong case to be ranked at the bottom of the top 10.

It gets deeper. Kaizer Mabuza, who recently upset Kendall Holt is now up to second-tier contender. Victor Ortiz and Kendall Holt can come back from heavy defeats later on this year. Mike Alvarado and Victor Manuel Cayo are unbeaten and look promising, as is the obscure Ionut Dan Ion and Cesar Rene Cuenca. Golden Boy have been hyping up another Argentinean, Lucas Matthysse, another unbeaten fighter that has talent in abundance. Ex-title challenger Herman Ngoudjo is not quite done yet, neither is Gavin Rees. The list goes on.

They might be a long way off the likes of Bradley, but match up anybody that I've mentioned so far with each other and I won't be complaining. A blown-up Ricky Hatton might still be the biggest money fight at light welterweight, but the division is catching up fast. There are just so many fascinating fights that could be made at 140 pounds.

The departure of Ricky Hatton will definitely be viewed as a positive thing as it will open the gateway for fighters to solidify their position in a talented division. Bradley has already seized on Hatton's inactivity, cementing his place at the top of the standings, for now.

There has been talk of Bradley facing nearly everyone. The likes of Edwin Valero, Amir Khan, Joshua Clottey and Juan Manuel Marquez have been called out recently, all to be dismissed by their associates. Promoter Gary Shaw is so confident that his fighter is the best out there, that he'll match him up with anyone.

And for once, he's right. Bradley is the best light welterweight, nobody comes close on current form and level of opponents. Talent wise, Alexander and Khan can compete, but they need a couple of years to develop under careful matchmaking that ultimately depletes them in the long run.

He's still without an opponent for his May date after weeks of searching for anybody that fits the criteria. However, there's much action outside of Bradley happening at the moment. This Saturday, Devon Alexander will take on Juan Urango to unify half of the division. In May, Amir Khan will make his Stateside debut against Paulie Malignaggi in his first proper defence of the WBA trinket. Edwin Valero will take on Lamont Peterson in what is an intriguing fight on paper. And in a true crossroads fight, Victor Ortiz will face Nate Campbell in a bout that could swing either way, it depends on what mood the fighters are in on the night.

It's a great time for the division right now, and fighters should take advantage of the good times. They shouldn't mess around with tune-ups that could turn on its head, the time is now. Could we see more light welterweights break into the fictional pound-4-pound rankings soon? In my opinion, most definitely. If they can sustain the excitement and quality in their fights, more fighters are bound to break the top 10 a lot sooner than expected.

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5 Fights That Define Miguel Cotto

Miguel Cotto L TKO 11 Antonio Margarito, 7/26/2008

Cotto suffered a brutal beating at the hands of "The Tjuana Tornado," Antonio Margarito in the biggest fight of his career up to that point.

The controversy exists about whether Margarito was using loaded hand wraps, but there's no controversy about the fact that Cotto absorbed a tremendous amount of punishment that may still be weighing on his psyche.




Miguel Cotto UD Shane Mosley, 11/10/2007

Cotto might have been catching Shane Mosley at the right time, but "Sugar" showed that he still had plenty of life left in his 36-year old body.

Mosley fought an extremely close fight and finished very strong to lose a close decision.

But Cotto proved two things with this win: He could box as well as slug and, most importantly, he belonged among the elite of the sport.


Miguel Cotto TKO 11 Zab Judah, 6/9/2007

A bloodied and severely tested Cotto was pushed to the brink by the supremely talented Zab Judah. After being buzzed early on, Cotto pushed forward with the full support of a Madison Square Garden crowd and eventually wore Judah down.

Despite some controversy regarding several low-blows, Cotto took care of business and established himself as a real force at 147.

Miguel Cotto RTD 5 Carlos Quintana, 12/2/2006

In his first real fight at Welterweight, Cotto unleashed a savage attack on Quintana to capture the vacant WBA Welterweight title.

A game and talented Quintana appeared to be overmatched against a highly motivated and mean-spirited Cotto.




Miguel Cotto TKO 5 DeMarcus Corley, 2/26/08

Far from "Just Another Defense" of his Jr. Welter title, Cotto's adventure with "Chop Chop" saw him meet, and overcome, his first real test.

Despite being knocked down in the first, Corley came back strong in the third and severely wobbled Cotto.

The Puerto Rican champ would survive and eventually stop the quick-fisted southpaw.

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Zab Judah Stops Journeyman...Charges 25 bucks to see it.

Boxing's most un-anticipated PPV in history is now officially done and in the books.

In the gruesome main event, Zab proved that he still had what it takes to beat an inactive, 22-19-2 journeyman by slaughtering Ubaldo Hernandez in 2 pathetic rounds.

Hernandez had the look of the first skinny dipper at Camp Crystal Lake in any Friday the 13th movie... Just asking to be killed.

Zab obliged and got rid of him in round two, but he could've ended it in the first fifteen seconds if he had wanted to.

On the undercard, Joel Casamayor played second fiddle by beating journeyman Jason Davis in a tougher than expected eight round UD.

I don't know what the official attendance was, but I've never seen the Palms Casino look so dark as the production crew did their best to black-out the crowd and not allow any empty seats to be seen on TV.

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Zab Judah Returns November on PPV

On his Ustream page tonight, Zab Judah revealed plans for his return...

Acording to Judah, he will return on a self-promoted PPV, November 6th...He will face Israel Cardona and the undercard will feature Hasim Rahman, Daniel Judah and one more fight...

Right now, the price is set at 24.99 and it will originate from the Palms Casino in Las Vegas.

If this is 100% correct, this will be a Friday night pay per view.

Stay tuned for more details

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The BTBC Rumor Mill

Sources wrangled and cornered by The BTBC this afternoon have let loose that recently stripped WBC Champ, Timothy Bradley, could be defending his WBO Jr. Welterweight Title in the late Summer or early Fall against former 135 lb. lineal champ, Nate Campbell. The fight is still in the negotiation stage, but both sides are not far apart financially. The bout would probably represent the biggest payday available for either fighter right now at 140 and it's a sure sell to Showtime...

Zab Judah, who was rumored to be getting a shot at the soon-to-be-vacated IBF Jr. Welter Title on the PBF/JMM card in July may apparently be matched up with another opponent if particulars with Randall Bailey can't get worked out. The rumored substitute for Bailey is, Ricky Hatton's bro, Matthew Hatton...

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Yet Another Title Shot for Zab Judah?

Boxingscene.com is reporting on a rumor that would have Boxing's answer to the Washington Generals, Zab Judah, on the verge of getting yet another shot at a World Title.

The story has Judah moving back down to Jr. Welterweight to take on top challenger, Randall Bailey for Juan Urango's soon-to-be-vacant 140 lb. IBF crown despite the fact that Judah hasn't been active in that weight class since 2003.

If the fight goes down as rumored, it'll be on the undercard of Floyd Mayweather vs. Juan Manuel Marquez. This would be Judah's 18th World Title Fight. He's 0 for his last 4 and hasn't been on the winning end of a title fight in over 4 years. Go figure...

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