Boxing Preview: Floyd Mayweather – Zab Judah

Don’t Bet Against Judah!

When Zab Judah, 34-3 (25), lost his WBC Welterweight Championship to Carlos Baldomir back on January 8 of this year, many boxing fans thought that the prescheduled super fight between Judah and Floyd Mayweather, 35-0 (24), would not happen or at least would be postponed to a later date. Mayweather had the option of facing Baldomir, but that

fight never materialized, reportedly due to Baldomir’s high purse demands. In a move that would not be considered unprecedented, HBO, Bob Arum, and Don King chose to proceed with the proposed Judah vs. Mayweather fight, and it will take place this Saturday night. Thus far, this has been a very smart decision as most of the seats at the Thomas and Mack arena in Las Vegas have been sold. There has been an overwhelming demand for media credentials from domestic as well as international media. The interest in this showdown is similar to that shown for such legendary pairings as Hagler vs. Hearns and Leonard vs. Hearns I. There is a definite “buzz” in the boxing world surrounding this fight and the promotion is hoping to beat or match the record sale of one million pay per view buys held by the non-heavyweight fight between Oscar De la Hoya and Felix Trinidad back in 1999.

Any true boxing fan knows that “styles make fights” and that contests of this type will sell themselves. Floyd Mayweather has been a champion for eight years. With the exception of one controversial decision win against Jose Luis Castillo, his resume speaks for itself. He beat the best fighters at junior lightweight and lightweight. After defeating a limited Arturo Gatti and capturing a world title in the junior welter division, his third major belt in as many weight classes, Mayweather now has his eyes on Judah’s IBF Welterweight crown.

Mayweather believes that he is superior to Judah based on a reported sparring session the two had a few years ago. Mayweather claims to have handled Judah easily to the point where Judah’s father/trainer, Yoel, had to intercede because it was a total mismatch. Yoel has been repeatedly asked about the reported sparring session by different media, and he declined to comment. What should we make of this? Should we even fork over the $49.95 to watch the fight this Saturday?

History teaches us that sparring is only sparring. Muhammad Ali beat up Larry Holmes for years in sparring, only to be defeated by Larry Holmes when the two officially fought. Julio Cesar Chavez spanked Oscar De La Hoya and knocked him down when they sparred, only to have De La Hoya defeat Chavez twice. Paul Spadafora reportedly got the best of Mayweather when they sparred. Does that mean Spadafora, who is currently inactive, is better than Mayweather and is able to defeat him? No. Sparring is training; it’s another word for practice.

In practice, or a sparring session, you make mistakes and you pay for it, such as getting hit with left hooks to the head or to the body. There’s a saying: “in order to give an ass kicking, you have to receive one first”. By sparring, the combatants have the opportunity to learn about each other. If Mayweather got the best of Judah, believe that Judah realizes it and will be ready for Mayweather the second time around, the same way Mayweather will be ready for Spadafora should the two ever meet in the ring. In spite of the sparring session, Mayweather says that he expects Judah to bring his “A” game. He has also said that if Judah makes a mistake he will capitalize on it and finish him.

Judah is arguably as talented as Mayweather except in one department, his chin. Judah is a fighter who, apparently, does not relish prosperity. In order to put on a spectacular performance and fight according to his talent, he has to have previously lost an important fight (the first Spinks bout), fight in hostile territory (the Spinks rematch), and take short money (again, the Spinks rematch). This is a man who loves adversity. When his career is in jeopardy, the real Zab Judah emerges. All signs point to this. Reports are that Judah has rededicated himself and is more than ready to challenge and defeat Mayweather.

Judah has secluded himself the past two months in Florida getting himself in the best physical condition of his career. With the exception of the press conferences and a couple of interviews saying that the Mayweather fight will be easy, Judah has not really done much to promote this fight, much to the dismay of Mayweather. Judah’s father has been participating in the media conference calls in place of his son. He has also kept very quiet about their strategy for Mayweather. Judah is apparently taking the advice he once gave to former opponent Terron Millet, on ESPN 2 Fights, “don’t talk about, be about it”.

So what can we expect to see after the first bell rings this Saturday for this main event? Mayweather will come out and attempt to use his speed against Judah but will realize that Judah is just as fast as he is. Floyd will have some success using his defensive skills (rolling his shoulder, catching punches with his gloves, counter punching, etc.) He may even win the first three rounds.

Judah will stalk him like a hungry lion stalks a deer while adjusting to Mayweather’s fighting style. Then Floyd will eat more leather then he has ever eaten as the fight progresses. Floyd will begin to retreat after Judah begins to catch him with the left hand by the fifth round. Unlike Castillo, Judah will be able to find Mayweather’s chin. Mayweather does not punch as hard a Kostya Tszyu. His knockouts come from a combination of punches that wear his opponents down. Judah will evade most of those punches because of his speed. Judah will impose his will on Mayweather and force him to taste the canvas for the first time in his career. Judah will stop Mayweather in the eighth round. I wish I had a media credential to witness the biggest boxing upset of 2006.