This is true statement. There probably is no better example in my lifetime of a fighter transitioning from defense to offense and vise versa that Duran displayed in that fight. He methodically broke De Jesus down, displayed great defense in the form of either rolling with punches or ducking and countering, while staying in the pocket where he could instantaneously respond with combinations. Even if you're a Mayweather diehard fan, if you appreciate boxing on any level, it's hard not to respect what Duran did during that fight and many great trainers, including Dundee give Duran huge respect for his level of defense, he was simply so overwhelmingly offensively that his great defense often gets overlooked. When asked, Palomino, picked Duran as the best fighter he ever fought, but with respect to his defense, he said he defense was as good as Benitez. Best defense: I would say Benitez and Duran (tie) again. As I said, it was like Benitez had a sixth sense, like he knew what was coming. Duran was hard to catch also. I was trying to counter what he was doing but I couldnt because of his quickness. They were both good defensive fighters. Rather than laugh, you should be watching.
PBF has shown great transition from offence to defense. His fights with Chico, Hernandez and Gatti showed this. Duran's performance in that fight was great but IMO not better than PBF's against Chico. PBF-Chico is the best exhibition of the sweet science of this era, a true clinic that would stack up with the best in any era.:deal
Given the caliber of opposition, and the fact that Duran sacrificed very little offense in it, Duran-Dejesus 3 was more impressive than any of Mayweather's defensive performances. At worst, it's equal. He was completely within punching range, giving a slow patient beating, and making Dejesus miss over and over and over again. He made an excellent fighter just look anemic offensively, and he did it with fighting with (controlled) aggression too. Duran's mixing of offense and defense is what would give him the edge over Mayweather. He was brilliant at it and showed it against superior fighters than Mayweather ever beat.
I was reading a bio on Duran about a year ago, and there was one fighter, who's name escapes me, but he was a really good up and comer, and one of the sports writers, I think Bert Sugar, said this guy was a world class fighter and Duran just beat the **** out of him and made him look like a club fighter. That's when I knew I was watching someone special. As to the comments above, while it may be close defensively, and maybe even the edge goes to Mayweather, I don't think Duran and Mayweather are in the same league as far as offense is concerned. Duran was far far more aggressive, fought with a higher level of intensity and had KO power in both hands, particularly his right. Mayweather would do well to go the distance. Hell even Floyd's dad said Duran's a tough mother****er, which is echoed by pretty much anyone who say him fight, including trainers and judges of the highest order, such as Gil Clancy, Angelo Dundee, Ray Arcel, and Harold Lederman.
Duran is a guy who showed himself to be a mental midget. A guy gave him a little movement and he quits instead of trying to cut off the ring. Floyd wins because he smarter and mentally tougher.