Roberto Duran vs Floyd Maywather Jr @lw

This fight would be competitive for a few rounds. I can even see Floyd taking some early rounds. IMO, he is more skilled from a pure boxing point of view.

But Duran is far tougher, physically and mentally. At LW, he had one loss which he handily avenged by stoppage. Twice.

(Mayweather had one poor performance, arguably a loss, at the weight).

Duran's constant pressure would wear Floyd down and take its toll as the fight went on.

Duran beat a better, slicker fighter in Leonard, and at 147.

BTW, the mythology that Leonard fought the wrong fight first time around is just that. Mythology.

Leonard fought exactly the kind of fight in Montreal that he said he was going to fight going in.

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And so, it was a myth that Duran suckered Leonard out of his gameplan. Leonard fought exactly the fight he had planned on fighting.

And this piece of mythology still haunts this forum, and gets trotted out frequently to diminish Duran's triumph in what was one of the top three or four fights of the last hundred years.

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Both men were in their very best shape in Montreal. This cannot be said of the weight-draining Duran in New Orleans.

The best Duran beat the best Leonard. I think he would do the same or worse to the best Floyd.


I see a Duran-Mayweather fight being even till about the mid rounds, before Duran starts to take over, either winning a clear UD, or, more likely, stopping Floyd late.

 

Good post, and I like the part where Leonard says "I'm not changing my style at all".

Leonard changed his style for the REMATCH, not for the first Duran fight. Leonard's normal style was not to fight in such an extremely mobile and fleet-footed manner.

 

Duran's a nightmare match up for Floyd. That kind of ability to close the distance and his unequaled inside game are hell for Mayweather. He'd take a pretty wide UD or stop him late over 15 rounds, Floyd not disgracing himself at all in the process, just being outmatched.

 

Yeah you say so what. See that is what Duran fans do when a fact is made. If Duran beats someone give him 2 times more credit than he should ,but if he is beaten by Hearns and Leonard and Benitez easily it is a so what. He had an excuse. That is my point, the Duran fans are the ones not being objective. His machismo and charisma give him more points than his actual wins. I think he is great, but this 1-5 ATG ranking is not justified.
Reaching? I am stating good facts. With Ali you have him beating legends so his ATG status is justified. Liston, Foreman,Frazier-even Patterson who got old.

 

Duran would beat Mayweather and Pac in one night, as well as anyone else since Whitaker at LW or above and he proly beats whitaker too but that's his toughest fight post 1980's

 

Ray fought the correct fight the second time. Leonard was not beat for the first fight. He was not even at his first anniversary from winning his first title. The best Ray was the Ray who fought Hearns in 1981, and that Ray would not have lost to any version of Duran. And I think you guys know it. You have to.

 

Leonard grew up. He knew he could not stand in front of Duran. No matter what the nonsense of Dundee saying Duran and the two steps and distance. If you give Duran distance he becomes a plodder. But you have to be a great boxer to do it and have great handspeed to counter him. The great fighters had that. A guy like Zab Judah can box him and Duran would stop Judah in 2 rounds. A guys like Benitez and Hearns and Leonard are a different story.

 

Close competitive fight. Duran tires Floyd out and wins a decision in the end. 135 was probably Floyds worst weight class.

 

Floyd a G.

 

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEC12ieb8TI[/ame]

 

It helped that Duran was not in the same shape for the rematch.

He wasn't beat the first time ? He sure as hell was.

Could you have meant "best ?"

He wasn't at his best the first time ?

Well he was as close to his best at 24 as Duran was at 30. He had already won 27 of his 36 win career.

The fight was right between Benitez (the previous year) and Hearns (the following year).

He was in the best shape of his life and right in his prime.

And he was defeated.



And Floyd has slightly less skill than Leonard and considerably less power, and he's going to beat Duran at LW?

Don't think so.

 

Look at how close Jose Luis Castillo pushed Floyd at 135 in the first fight using steady pressure.

How one couldn't see Duran winning a fight at least 7-5 in rounds or more in a 12, and an ever increasing likelyhood of stopping Floyd if the fight were over 15 rounds, is beyond me.

Floyd is not a **** fighter - But we're talking about someone who is a lock for an all time top 3 135 pounder in pretty much any book.

 

There's hope for you yet, Michigan.


BTW, my 'golden six' in terms of natural boxing talent are all Americans.

All black too.

(Robinson, Ali, Leonard, Whittaker, Jones and Mayweather).

These aren't the six greatest and I rank Duran above four of them.

But, of the boxers I have watched, these guys had the most talent.

 

Duran in a close but clear decision.

 

Come on.

Look at Castillo 1.

Easy decision for Roberto.