Much has been said and many questions
have been asked about this Saturday night's WBC welterweight title
clash between undefeated Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and Victor Ortiz at
the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Will the hunger and desire
of the young titlist Ortiz be enough to topple the aging Mayweather?
Is Ortiz ready for a fighter of Mayweather's caliber? Will this be a
competitive fight, or will it end up being a one sided beating? Only
2 more days until we find out, but I think what we will witness isn't
too hard to predict.
Despite his relatively new status as a
top fighter, Ortiz has been exuding the confidence of a long time
champion. He claims to be unfazed by the spotlight that's been
thrust upon him and the corresponding media hoopla. To say Ortiz has
a chip on his shoulder is an understatement. At yesterday's press
conference, he would say, 'It’s going to be very nice to do what
everyone else failed to do. 41-0? Forty one of those weren’t me.
Forty one of those couldn’t win it like I can. Saturday night, I
will hold my hand up and I’m going to put you on your ass.'
Reading into Victor's words and
demeanor, it seems certain he will be coming forward and putting as
much pressure on Floyd as he can. After all, that was the strategy
employed by Jose Luis Castillo, the one man that pushed Floyd the
hardest and closest to professional defeat. Victor will need to
bully the bully, makes things ugly, turn the boxing match into a
fight. Having gone a full 12 rounds only a single time in his career
in his last fight, does he have the internal fortitude necessary to
sustain this sort of attack long enough to secure a victory?
In recent fights, Floyd has not used
his legs defensively as much as he has in the past. Some attribute
it to Floyd's slowly eroding physical attributes. The reason
notwithstanding, Floyd said, 'You guys don’t have to worry about me
back peddling. I’m coming straight ahead, he’s coming ahead. He
said the fight won’t go the distance, I said the fight won’t go
the distance. Trust me, it won’t go the distance.'
If we are to believe the fighters, and
it's not always prudent to do so, we should have 2 guys fighting toe
to toe. Floyd, even without using his legs, has a defense so
masterful that he's rarely even taken a hard shot in 16 years as a
professional. Ortiz can often be caught off balance as he lunges in
with his powerful shots, yet if one of those shots lands it could end
the fight. I expect Ortiz to have some success in the early rounds,
as his youthful vigor, confidence, and determination will carry him.
However, as the fight progresses, Floyd
adjusts. There is no one who is better at in fight adjustments than
Floyd. Floyd has also been at the top of the sport for many years,
with many championship rounds under his belt. These will be the
deciding factors. Floyd's time at the top will end some day, but it
won't be Saturday night. After 10 or so rounds of defensive
brilliance and precision counters punches from Floyd, and as Ortiz
becomes sloppily aggressive in his frustration, Victor will be caught
by a punch that he won't see coming, and the fight will be over. If
Ortiz manages to look great in losing though, he may not lose much
stock at all. After all, he's facing one of the greatest fighters of
our generation.
Questions or comments,
e-mail 
John at: jnovoselac@yahoo.com
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