Floyd Mayweather Jr. is many things.
He’s an egomaniac; avaricious; a convicted domestic abuser.
He’s also, arguably, the greatest to ever put on a pair of boxing gloves.
If his bout on Saturday with Conor McGregor was about who was the better human being, the Irishman would treat Mayweather like he did Jose Aldo – one punch and it’s all over.
Unfortunately for the mixed martial arts superstar he’s not facing an easily-baited man like Aldo was at UFC 194. No, up against Mayweather he’s more likely to catch a counter right straight on the nose after seeing his left land on nothing.
And that, in a nutshell, is how Saturday’s fight is going to go.
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Mayweather deserves any and all criticism levied against him in regards to his personal conduct, but one thing that can never be put in doubt is his near-divine boxing talents.
It’s almost unfair how gifted Mayweather is as a boxer. Like a video game character, the 40-year-old possesses god-like hand speed, quick feet, an almost-psychic ability to predict what his opponent wants to do, otherworldly spatial awareness and impossible reactions.
This all combines to create a defence so impenetrable and a counter-punching offence so demoralizing that it’s really no surprise he’s an unblemished 49-0; he fights with a perfect style.
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Before every boxing match the referee tells both fighters to protect themselves at all times. Mayweather has done that better than any other fighter in the history of the sport. He literally makes it impossible for his opponents to win because they’re incapable of landing any clean shots on him.
Don’t expect anything different Saturday. Yes, Mayweather is a lot older and his skills have presumably diminished while McGregor is in the physical prime of his life.
It doesn’t matter.
Even at half speed, Mayweather’s still faster than anything McGregor could ever hope to be and is in better condition, too. Remember, this isn’t an MMA match where you can attempt a takedown and pound away, nor does a championship fight only go 25 minutes. This is a boxing match, and in boxing a full 12-round fight is 36 minutes of hell during which you cannot allow your hand speed to drop. Mayweather can do this. Can McGregor?
And while McGregor might very well have special knockout power, so did Arturo Gatti, Zab Judah, Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, Saul Alvarez, Manny Pacquiao and just about every other of the 49 professional boxing opponents Mayweather has faced and dummied in the ring.
Simply put, the logical conclusion you immediately came to when this fight was first bandied about was and is still dead on: 50-0 never looked so guaranteed.
