kostya tzuyu(sp?) vs. Floyd Mayweather 140

I certainly think KT has a chance, and those that don't are dillusional. If KT hurts PBF and it's certainly possible, he could certainly win a decision, especially if he knocked him down once or twice. KT certainly handled Judah far easier than PBF did. And a pressure fighter like KT could give PBF fits. In a similar vein I'd also pick Duran to beat PBF. PBF was a great boxer, nobody can deny that, but I haven't seen him in the trenches enough to think that he's an A1 fighter. And there's a huge difference between the two. Duran for example is going to make anyone fight..cause he'd going to try and get inside and put tons of hurt on you. Similarly, KT is going to try and hit you with the great right hand of his, and he too will hurt you if it connects.

 

I can only say thanks Kostya for a career which broke down the barriers, and provided many highlights for your fans... for me personally, the evening of 'Unfinished Business' was unforgettable..
Floyd, I will be forever grateful to you for knocking the stuffing out of Hatton...that night, you proved your mettle and greatness.

 

Let's analyse that.
Floyd won the IBF from who at 147? Zab? (See: Dance, chicken)

And Baldo? You seriously don't think Kostya could outbox Baldo?
Of course he ****ing could. In his sleep.
So that's 147 sorted.

154. Could he beat the SAME version of Oscar as Floyd fought - if Kostya was at his peak? (As Floyd was pretty much or not far from it?)

Well, a bit tougher. I don't think that version of ODLH stops Tszyu. And Tszyu probably wouldn't have stopped ODLH (though he would have had more chance than Floyd)
So it's down to points. And seeing Floyd won an SD - Ithink Kostya Tszyu at his best could have done the same too.

Irrelevant. Mike Tyson lost to Buster Douglas. Doesn't mean Douglas is a better fighter than Tyson ever was, or the best ever fighter at heavyweight does it?

Slight favourite I could go for. Not solid. Floyds not winning by KO.
Tszyu could win by KO or on points. I can see any reasonable person arguing at most 60\40 either way.

I'd go Floyd as a very slight favourite.

 

Tszyu why not.

 

Yes.

 

There are a lot of delusional PBF nuthuggers on this thread.

Tszyu is arguably the second best all-time at 140, just behind The Hawk. I think he beats PBF something like 8-4, but I wouldn't be surprised to see PBF do his own version of the chicken dance.

 

A lot of guys didn't stay that long @ 140, so they don't rank as high.

Tszyu was very good but would most likely be an underdog to guys @ 140 like late 80s/early 90s Chavez, Locche, Cervantes, Pryor, Whitaker, De La Hoya, etc...probably Mayweather as well.

 

PBF by late TKO. Kostya will have his moments, but too much speed for him will kill.

 

I hear what you're saying. My all-time 1 and 2 at 135 are Duran and Whitaker, and I would favor both over Tszyu at 140.

 

mgal7414,

I`d like to add to what you already stated so eloquently about Kostya that he was also a very good infighter and was one rough customer in close. Kostya would let his hands go on the inside and work you over to the body and throw in the occasional shot to the back/side of the head for good measure... kinda reminds me of Gene Fullmer a bit in that regard.

By using these tactics and his superior physical strenght to muscle/maul Mayweather inside he will wear him down enough down the stretch to win the remaining two or three rounds and secure a unanimous verdict in my opinion and one that won`t necessarily be close on the scorecards either.

I also echo Scurla`s sentiments as well... how some people can totally dissmiss a fighter of Tszyu`s calibre and ability ought to be ashamed of themselves and should sit down and watch some of his finest performances before making such idiotic statements.

It is one thing to be admire a fighter and be a fan of his, but when you start giving no credit whatsoever to a fellow great like Tszyu and say boldly that he would get shut out or better yet "easily" outpointed your knowledge of this sport and its fundamentals have to be questioned.

Mayweather while being very good defensively is not nearly as agile, active or quick fisted at 140 as he was ten pounds lower, so it is not as if the man isn`t going to land on Floyd and hurt him at some point if not several which is what I think would happen. After tasting a few good right hands from KT and maybe even getting dropped along the way he`d go into a defensive shell and look to potshot his way to a victory.

However, Tszyu`s methodical/stalking style had a certain way of making him seem in control at all times and against a guy who would be as defensive as I reckon Floyd would have been after getting hurt early on I can`t see how the judges would get the impression that FM was "outboxing" Tszyu by backpedalling.

Kostya would look like the boss in there even if it is subtle at first before the wear and tear starts telling on Mayweather by the later rounds. KT would be controlling the pace and tempo of the fight and the naturally smaller and light hitting Mayweather would be in for a long night to say the least.

And I dont think a KO is out of the question here either, as Kostya definately had the power, accuracy and more importantly the timing to knock almost anyone out at or near his weight. I wouldn`t be surprised to see him knock Floyd back to kindergarten either courtesy of one of his atomic right hands if he lands it on the right spot at the right time which he did very well indeed to many an opponent.

If he does and he has Mayweather reeling KT would finish him off in my honest opinion, he was an excellent finisher and Floyd`s defensive prowess won`t save him if he is in la-la land while trying to fend off a Kostya who smells blood and is going in for the finish. Either way, I really don`t see how Mayweather wins this from a stylistic standpoint as this is bad matchup for him at this weight against this calibre of opponent.

The way to beat Tszyu wasn`t to try and outbox him... he as mgal already mentioned was very clever in figuring out his opponents and adjusting his style if necessary to beat his foe. He was also a multi-dimentional fighter as he could fight both off the front or backfoot seamlessly.

If you were to beat Tszyu you would have to take the fight to him... push him back whenever you can and right from the start to get him to fight you in close to make sure he can`t get as much leverage into his punches like he would at mid-range were he was at his best. This will also ensure that he will have to fight at your pace, thus taking away one of his strenghts and main weapons which is to control the pace and tempo of the fight to his liking.

Take that away from him and you improve your chances tremendously, just look at Phillips who pulled the trick and got the better technician in Tszyu to abandon his strenghts and fight his fight instead in close, slugging it out. Hatton also succeeded in overthrowing the aging champion with similar tactics although he was a lot more physical than Vince was what with all the wrestling and all.

Mayweather won`t and quite frankly can`t fight him that way as he would get his head handed to him, as such his chances of victory for my money are slim to none as only a equally sized man with taller and longer dimensions than KT with a good jab and legs would be liable to outbox him, but otherwise he`d hold his own with just about anyone and that includes Mayweather.

It`d be a close fight up until the halfway point, by which time Tszyu would have figured out what he needs to do to win and would ride that gameplan to the final bell (or ten count). After all, fighting the likes of a very limited Henry Brusseles, shot to pieces Sharmba Mitchell,C-level at best Demarcus Corley and a completely depleted version of Arturo Gatti who was always a relatively easy target to begin with and became especially so a few years before he even fought Mayweather is not quite the same thing as taking on a peak destroyer like Kostya Tszyu who was a great boxer himself and with a KO punch in either hand.

just my two 0.02$ worth....

 

Timing beats speed, KT would time Mayweather all night long, cruising a comfortable decision. Zab put Mayweather on ***** street and all Floyd could do is edge a close decision, KT on the other hand put Zab on his ass, why?!
Because KT has unbelievable timing skills, timing kills speed. Ask Zab.

 

Great Post and one everyone should read.

Especially PBF nuthuggers that have never watched Tszyu fight.
Because they know nothing i bet they didnt know Tszyu's stats against Slick Southpaws was 8-0 with 8 KO's.

If they think Tszyu would get totally outclassed by PBF i bet they never seen his fight against Forrest or even his total domination of MA.Gonzalez something not even a Prime Dela Hoya could do.

The Prime Tszyu which blasted Judah away in 2 rounds and look what a mentally past it Judah did to Floyd took the first 4 rounds of him.
Even Cotto could do what Tszyu did.

Now we all know Tszyu lost to Phillips and this and that but he was in those fights until they ended.
Say what you want but a Prime Kostya Tszyu would give PBF the fight of his F-ING life. Even Roger Mayweather knows this.

 

Answer honestly, did you even watch that fight?

 

Of course I did, more than once actually.
Zab can beat Floyd to the punch, he just doesn't do it consistently because he lacks boxing discipline. That's the reason Floyd won, unlike Zab, he can keep his composure.

 

Why do people keep comparing Zab to Floyd? Zab is my boy, but he is nowhere near as good as Floyd.