Recap : Pretty Boy defeats Golden Boy via split decison.

So Floyd Mayweather Jr proved that speed still kills and disproved that a good big man always beats a good little man, right?  Not really.  What Saturday night’s split decision win by ‘Pretty Boy’ Floyd Mayweather over ‘The Golden Boy’ really proves is that younger good is usually better than older good.

From my vantage point at press row, I had Oscar winning by one point, but I have no problem with a draw or Floyd winning by a few points.   In actuality, the fight would have been scored a draw had the one judge awarded De La Hoya the 12th and final round as the other two judges and most everybody else at the MGM Grand had.  

As expected in a fight like this one that was fought on the ropes with a lot of defense by Floyd, opinions on who won were all over the place, even from people I really respect in the sport.  I might even have a different scorecard when I watch it on the HBO replay this weekend.  Boxing at this level and in a fight like this is so very subjective.   Bottom line is this one proved out to be a glorified chess match.  It was a very tactical battle and maybe we should have figured as much.  We know that Floyd’s specialty is defense and counter punching and Oscar is showing his age. 

There was really no total commitment by either fighter and it has nothing to do with heart, courage or anything like that, it’s just the way it is.  Floyd’s first and foremost concern is defense, then counterpunching.  Oscar, who I have in the past criticized for lack of commitment, tried to press and force things, but because of Floyd’s great speed, quickness and ring abilities and because Oscar has slowed due to his age,  he simply could not pull the trigger.  It’s hard enough to pull the trigger anytime with Mayweather he is so elusive a target. 

As I predicted in my pre-fight breakdown of things, Oscar’s best weapon was his left jab, and when he threw the punch he was actually controlling things in there as Floyd was surprisingly easy to hit with that punch.  The jab is the only punch he is easily hit with.   For whatever reason Floyd does not deal well with a good jab.  Oscar for whatever reason abandoned the shot and that got Floyd going.  Had Oscar kept throwing that shot he no doubt would have won a decision in my opinion. 

Now, as for why De La Hoya stopped throwing it, well the most likely scenario would be fatigue, and we have certainly seen De La Hoya tire down the stretch before.  You know the one great thing I found about the jab in my brief fistic career was it was not only the most important offensive punch, but it was also a great defensive punch and the one punch that even when I was dead tired I could still throw.  De La Hoya much to the dismay of his trainer, Freddie Roach, simply quit throwing the punch and it cost him dearly because it cost him the fight. 

I really believe Oscar can only fight in spurts at this point in his career.  To be perfectly honest he even did that when he was in his prime but it wasn’t as noticeable as this past weekend against Mayweather.  The only reason Floyd became offensive was because Oscar went into a shell.  Oscar is a sure fire, first round Hall of Famer but he is probably lucky that fights are no longer scheduled for 15 rounds as he is just not, and has never been, a good 15-round fighter. 

As for the future of these two, whether or not there will be or should be a rematch, I will have much more later on this week.  No matter who you felt won this fight, boxing was the winner as the this fight got everybody in or out of the sports world talking about BOXING, and that is good for our sweet science.  Check back later on in the week with much more on Mayweather vs De La Hoya fight fans, and be sure to keep logging in to INTHISCORNERTV.COM, as I look forward to your responses.