Photos by Esther Lin for Showtime
by Gautham Nagesh
In the end, Mayweather-Pacquiao was destined for the same ending as the other 47 fights of Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s career.
Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao had his moments, landing a hard left hand in the 4th round and sporadic flashy barrages that kept the crowd engaged. But the result felt inevitable from the moment Mayweather landed his first sharp right hand in the first round. Mayweather looked faster, and sharper than his shorter opponent. Bigger, taller, and faster is usually a pretty good advantage in any sport.
The true genius of Mayweather is how he makes a phenomenal athlete like Pacquiao look ordinary. The fight unfolded like so many Mayweather fights, with the rounds ticking by slowly in his favor, and his opponent increasingly frustrated by Mayweather’s refusal to let himself be hit.
Pacquiao kept trying, and occasionally found success by forcing Mayweather against the ropes with his jab. At times Pacquiao caught Mayweather with his left hand, or with the tail-end of a four or five-punch combination. But more often he found himself on the receiving end of Mayweather’s counter-right hand, or a check hook. Floyd refused to stand and engage, Pacquiao’s chosen style, and stayed mostly in the center of the ring, where he remains the king.
The final scores of 118–110 and 116–112 (twice) were merely academic. Stiff Jab scored it 116–112. To the millions watching the fight, it was obvious that Mayweather was the better man. Despite facing a decidedly hostile crowd under the brightest lights, Mayweather performed like it was just another day at the office. That might be why he cashes the biggest checks in sports history.
