This is a fair comment. Floyd could be extremely slippery when he wanted to be. But to win you have to engage and Hearns is a nightmare for him in that case.
Well, Benitez was pretty slippery too, but nobody expected him to retain his title against Hearns. Floyd would never take this match (as his history makes clear), but if he did, at best he'd be looking at a lopsided decision loss. Floyd stands 5'8" with a 72 inch reach. Tommy was 6'2" with a 78 inch reach. To take him at Floyd's size would require lethal body punching, something not in Floyd's arsenal. In top shape, I think Duran could've done this to Hearns, and maybe Cuevas with the right rubber soled boxing shoes (Pipino wrongly wore leather soled boxing shoes, making it impossible to stand his ground and plant). Floyd's recorded at 148. That puts him in Tommy's peak division. The real challenge here is to somehow make a case for Floyd and nobody seems willing to even attempt that.
What I'd REALLY like to see is Floyd versus Shavers in a 14 foot ring, both wearing six ounce gloves (so Larry Merchant can see PBF's ass get kicked)...
Duran came out with the wrong game plan, he was being overly easily to find in there & acting very cocky while Hearn's was just focused on his assignment, Too much machismo from Duran which was a recurrent from him in general.
It's a credit to Hearns that he can be so reflective and such a gentleman... ...outside of the ring. Within that squared circle, Hearns utterly wrecks Mayweather.
Benitez was actually the favorite. The majority predicted him to outbox Hearns. The prevailing thought was that the master boxer would outbox an aggressive less disciplined Hearns and frustrate him. Hearns and Manny certainly surprised them.
Even assuming we had a time machine to make fantasy fights happen, good luck getting Mayweather to climb into a ring with Hearns.
Hearns, throughout his entire career throughout every weightclass was never outboxed. His losses and main struggles had to do with being roughed up.......Floyd can't rough him up (there are some guys his size Floyd could but Hearns ain't that), I don't think Hearns would ever land the real clean kill switch shot, but I think he'd win a decision where he pulls away in the late rounds. Hearns has outboxed boxers that are on a par with Floyd's skill set.
Yup this one has been done loads of time. Hearns is just all wrong for Mayweather. It is not impossible Floyd could beat Duran or even Leonard but really he has literally no chance against Hearns. Hell he might even stand a better chance against Hagler than Hearns. Styles and that.
I think, but could never know as fact, that Hearns was being overly courteous in his quoted words - but it’s more than fair to provide those words - we could dismiss all such quotes otherwise with the same generic reasoning. Now if Tommy meant what he said (and again, I personally don’t think that he did), I would be very concerned - concerned in so far as Tommy “overthinking” it, lacking due confidence and affording Mayweather far more respect than he deserves. Nah Tommy, just get out there and do your thing - for all his boxing education and skills - it would all fall into place. Hearns won’t be up against the madly skilled, incredibly tenacious and acutely competitive Leonard. Against Floyd, Tommy won’t have to second guess himself or even go so far as to flip himself entirely over to the role of pure boxer. If Floyd did climb into the ring with Hearns, I think we’d see a degree of leeriness - as Floyd showed (imo) even against an off prime Pac - when Floyd did finally muster himself to climb into the ring with Manny.
Duran Kos Floyd in 10 at 135.. Floyd dosent get in the ring with Tommy at 147 ... next for the " blowhards "