Magno in the Doghouse: On Mayweather vs. Pacquiao, Canelo, Golovkin and more
 By David Tyler, Doghouse Boxing (May 15, 2015)
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Mayweather vs. Pacquiao
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| One of the premier boxing experts, lets once again welcome Paul into the doghouse.
David Tyler: Paul we finally had the fight of the century – Pacman vs. Mayweather. Your thoughts about the fight and why were so many people disappointed with the fight?
Paul Magno: The hip, boxing writer thing to say is that the fight was disappointing. But I don't know of any real boxing person who thought the fight would play out any differently. It was a stylistic mismatch in a lot of ways. Put Mayweather and Pacquiao in the ring a thousand times and a thousand times you'll get this same off-putting rhythm. Stop and start, maul and push, miss and flail. With a lot of these people, I think when they say the fight was disappointing, they really mean that they were disappointed that Mayweather didn't get beat to a pulp. As for the casual fan or boxing-curious outsider-- if they expected Gatti-Ward, they were definitely disappointed. But it was never going to be that type of fight. As for me, I enjoyed the fight for what it was. I found myself entertained.
DT: I agree with you. One of the more outstanding boxing performances I have ever seen. Paul, what adjustments should Pacman have made to counter Mayweather’s superior boxing skills?
PM: We knew from the moment this bout was first proposed five or so years ago that the key would be footwork...Pacquiao had to figure out a way to cut off the ring, force Mayweather to fight.He had the hand speed to do damage and he did manage to buzz Mayweather, but he could never own the ring, never get Mayweather in the right spots. Whatever Freddie Roach taught Manny was out the window after Mayweather made that first adjustment in about the fifth round. After that, it all looked improvised from Pacquiao. Sloppy, meaningless movement and just following Mayweather around. At the end of the day, Manny reacted like every other Mayweather opponent.
DT: Paul, Good observation. What’s your thoughts about the shoulder controversy? Should Pacman be punished for hiding his injury and then falsifying the medical forms?
PM: The shoulder! There's one of two ways to see this-- Manny either lied about his injury and cooked up the shoulder problems after the fact or he withheld information about the injury and intentionally entered the bout at a disadvantage. Both are pretty rotten ways to conduct business-- especially at this level. Team Pacquiao's most recent take is that they were fine coming into the bout, but that Manny re-injured himself in the fourth round. But, if that is the case, then why did they want a shot of Toradol before the fight? This might explain the reason for that request, but it definitely doesn't show Manny in a good light at all: http://boxingtribune-news.com/posts/2358013/the-mystery-surrounding-manny-pacquiao---s-injection.html
Personally, I saw no signs whatsoever of a serious rotator cuff injury. He was flinging that right shoulder all over the place-- never winced, flinched, or pawed at it. He never mentioned it in the corner, his corner never mentioned it to him, he never brought it up in the post-fight interview. He walked back to the dressing room smiling and waving. Only when he got back to the dressing room and the press conference began that he mention his "injury." If the above article is on the right track, this whole thing looks pretty sinister. That's my take.
DT: I agree totally, he looked like the same Pacman to me. Will there be an immediate rematch between Mayweather and Pacman? If not, what’s the next step for both fighters?
PM: I don't think there will be a rematch. I know there's a lot of money on the table, but I think Mayweather's at a point where he definitely doesn't want anything to do with Pacquiao or Arum again and he now has the "F--k You" money to not have to do anything he doesn't want to do, especially with his Showtime contract expiring. Pacquiao and Arum tried to ruin this victory for him, they tried to taint it and make the whole thing look ridiculous. That's a pretty deep cut to a guy with Mayweather's ego. I think Pacquiao may be done after this, anyway. He was entirely deflated after this bout. Forget about the Marquez KO, this kind of defeat on this grand a stage will linger. He'll return to the ring, but he won't be the same. If he faces solid opposition, he will get beat sooner rather than later. Or he may just opt to keep fighting low-level opposition in Macau.
DT: And Mayweather, how many more fights for him?
PM: The one in September...and I say he has one more fight after that, to break Marciano's record at the MGM Grand's brand new 20,000 seat arena, due to be debuted in the spring of next year.
DT: Let’s move on to the Saul “Canelo” Alvarez fight this past weekend. Your thoughts about his performance against Kirkland?
PM: The kid is for real. Kirkland was a good match-up for him and I never wavered on my feeling that he'd win decisively, but with a heavy-handed guy like Kirkland, nothing is taken for granted. Alvarez is developing himself well, fighting opponents of different styles and temperaments and it's going to show in the finished product. Trout, Mayweather, Angulo, Lara, Kirkland...That's a pretty impressive recent resume and none of these fighters are like the other. Canelo, in terms of raw ability, is not a superstar. He doesn't have particularly fast or heavy hands and his footwork has gone from slow and plodding to stable and steady-- and it probably won't get much better. But he's absorbing all these lessons from fighting all of these different styles. Canelo's strong points are his intelligence and determination and he's using them to keep advancing as a fighter.
DT: This weekend, HBO will showcase Gennady Golovkin. The GGG does not have a defense and demonstrates little head movement. If you agree with my view, then how would he perform against the powerful Canelo?
PM: Golovkin has this aura about him right now, so much so that his defects are going to be hard to exploit because most of those facing him will be three-quarters defeated before even entering the ring. It's a little like the prime Mike Tyson aura. But it's all an illusion. A man is just a man and all men can be beaten. Golovkin has never had to face much movement, he's never been pushed backwards, never had to deal with a fighter with a viable plan B, C, etc. I mentioned Canelo fighting all different styles, well Golovkin has basically fought the same fighter thirty times-- and, of course, he is outstanding at doing that and fighting those types of fights. But there are a lot of questions about him and how he may or may not respond in certain situations. We've all seen these offensive dynamos before and most fizzle the first time someone makes them think in the ring. For Canelo, I'd tell him to jab and move as much as possible from the outside and whenever Golovkin gets close, maul him and rough him up on the inside...Push him back, get back on the jab and long right hand, maul again when Golovkin pushes forward...Frustrate him, make him mad, make him think. Let's see if there's a plan B in there. Maybe he adapts and wins. Most often, though, these dynamo-types have never had to deal with a situation they simply couldn't punch their way through and when self-doubt starts creeping in, they lose their mojo.
DT: Paul, final question. Pacman and Mayweather are very close to haning 'em up. Who will take their place as the PPV kings?
PM: I don't know about anyone taking their place. Manny and Floyd are both unique characters that relied on unique circumstances to get to the top. And Unlike other past stars, neither one seems very inclined to risk passing the torch to a younger fighter. I guess the safest bet for PPV stardom would be Canelo Alvarez. The Mexican-American population is growing stronger and stronger and he's in the right weight range when it comes to finding quality opposition. But he's not a million PPV guy and I don't see anyone like that on the horizon.
DT: Thank you very much for taking the time for this interview.
PM: Thanks, David...as usual, it's been fun...If any of your readers have questions they can contact me at paulmagno@theboxingtribune.com.
Readers: Agree or disagree with Paul’s opinions? Thank you very much for taking the time to visit doghouse boxing and reading this interview.
David Tyler
Read the article that started it all:
 THE REAL QUESTIONS: Mayweather vs. Pacquiao David Tyler
***David Tyler replies to all his e-mails and loves to hear from the readers. Comments, Questions, Suggestions, E-mail  David now at: dtyler53@cox.net
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