How do you beat Floyd Mayweather? I have a clue as to how you can go about beating

It wasn't the best version of Floyd in that Chavez fight. It was his last fight at 130 and there were rumors that Floyd really struggled to make weight.

 

Floyd dominated Chavez.Chavez was just so damn active. A really good defensive southpaw would give Floyd fits IMO.

 

If you want to call ineffective aggression effective then I guess. Pbf was landing all the clean hard shots.

 

Not a bad analysis!

 

The whole key to beating Floyd Mayweather is simple. With any fighter, you want to attack and break down their strengths, and that creates the openings that reveal the weaknesses. When it comes to Floyd Mayweather the game plan is obvious. What is his greatest strength? His defense. Of all his skills and strengths it has been Mayweather's defensive abilities to avoid taking damage that has really kept him ahead of his opponents on the scorecards.

As some may already know, Floyd Mayweather incorporates the Philly Shell defense to his arsenal and sticks to it like white on rice. Like any other defensive posture, the Philly Shell has it's weaknesses. The weakness of the Philly shell is that the boxer using it is left vulnerable to a quick and powerful jab. When one throws a solid jab at the head or torso, the Philly Shell fighter is forced to bend awkwardly away from the punch leaving his feet stationary. Because the position of the defense is relatively low, the boxer is not able catch shots on the gloves or move away on foot, and will not be able to allow the punch to land because the jab is too fast and powerful.

The awkward bending back motion then leaves the philly-shell fighter vulnerable to a follow-up attack, as they elongate their lower torso leaving it exposed. This is because the boxer will be temporarily fixed to the canvass or reduced to performing small jumps backwards until he straightens his posture. This awkward position then makes the fighter extremely vulnerable to body shots, meaning his opponent can move in directly after opening him up with a jab, and deliver punches to the midsection.

Oscar De La Hoya did this well for most of the fight, but then abandoned the key to his game plan, the jab, going down the stretch. Cotto has both the jab and body punching ability to execute this plan to perfection. He will force him to the ropes this way, allowing for flurries to the body, setting up everything else. Cotto's jab is especially effective because he is what you call an "inverted southpaw" meaning that he is a left handed fighter who fights orthodox, meaning his dominant hand is also his lead hand that delivers his jab. There are several great examples of his body and jabbing ability, from the Mosley fight to the Quintana fight.

You can also break the Philly Shell by using what it already gives you. If you notice, Mayweather holds his lead-arm across his lower torso, so that the tip of the elbow of his lead arm points forward – and rests the glove of his backhand on, or just beneath his chin. This stance leaves the lower torso open for a clean punch behind the elbow. So an effective strategy once again, come to using a good jab or hook up top to force them into the shell, and then a hook just around the elbow into the side which may also open up the head or more of the body. All of this takes away a lot of the counter-punch ability that Floyd employs heavily in his offense, especially in conjunction with good footwork after you figure out the range and timing of your opponent.

Cotto has a real shot at beating Mayweather if his gameplan is anything like this. Mayweather is great, but all greats can be beaten.