Everyone and their mother has already pegged Floyd Mayweather Jr. to extend his perfect record to 43-0 against Miguel Cotto on Saturday.
But it's not as though Money May can simply show up to the MGM Grand Garden Arena and expect Junito to wave the white flag. Cotto's a pretty accomplished fighter in his own right, a southpaw with a strong left hook and a 37-2 career mark that stands as a testament to its power.
Mayweather should win—and win handily—so long as he does the following things at or near his usual capacity.
Defense, Defense, Defense
There's one aspect of boxing at which Money May has no equal, and that's defense. Mayweather is the master of dodging punches and deceiving his opponents into thinking he's actually open for a hit.
In essence, it's when Floyd appears most vulnerable that he's actually most dangerous.
If Mayweather can lull Cotto into a false sense of security, as he has so many fighters before, he should be in fine position to do some serious work on his Puerto Rican challenger.
Speed Kills
Speed plays a crucial part in Mayweather's expertise in defense, and even more so in his ability to devastate his opponents after the initial deke. Floyd's so fast, particularly with his hands, that he's often able to throw a punch and get out of the way while the other man is still working on his first move.
Junito may not be slow, but he's no Money May. He'll be hard-pressed to keep pace with Pretty Boy Floyd's fast fists and even speedier response to attacks.
Accuracy is Key
The only thing more remarkable than the speed with which Mayweather unleashes punches is the frequency with which said punches find their mark. What Money May lacks in knockout power, he more than makes up for in pure volume.
That combination allows Mayweather to stay ahead on the judges' scorecards, regardless of what his opponent is doing.
In this case, Mayweather will need to land a plethora of relatively puny punches to force Cotto into taking a wild shot or two, which he's been prone to do in the past. If that happens, expect Floyd to unleash some real fury to end the fight early.
Mariano Rivera Kerry Wood Francisco Cervelli Chad Moeller Jorge Posada Lance Berkman
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