Come on, let's do it, just for fun. Not who's the best with their defense, clearly Pea is better at slipping and sliding and Floyd is better at blocking, but who do you have in a fight at Lightweight? Floyd post-Gatti or Whitaker? Make your arguments, this shall be fun. I, for one, cannot say, as I'm simulating Pea vs. Gatti just for kicks in FNR4 atm.
I should note that Floyd, in an old interview, was once asked who he would have most wanted to share the ring with, given the chance. He said: "Aaron Pryor or Pernell Whitaker. Two guys that are legends that don't really get the credit that they truly deserve. People really don't know that Sugar Ray Leonard used to duck Aaron Pryor. And Pernell Whitaker -- he had a chance to share the ring with my uncle Roger...he came up victorious, but it was a close battle. I would have loved to have shared the ring with the great, legendary Pernell Whitaker myself." Just an interesting comment that not many people bring up. As for the fight itself...it would be close. I'm not even sure how Floyd would try to fight someone like Whitaker. Both guys thrive off the back foot, even though they could also be good offensively, too. Whitaker's southpaw stance would definitely give him an edge, and an even bigger weapon would be his wonderful jab. Floyd normally tries a pull-counter to stop people jabbing him (and he does it beautifully) but he'd have a lot of trouble trying to do that to someone as quick and defensively adept as Whitaker, especially considering the southpaw issue. Whitaker also throws better combinations, while Floyd (after Gatti) was beginning to edge into his potshot style that we now know so well. Floyd has that straight right hand that would serve him well, as well as a great left-hook, but I'm not sure if he'd be able to consistently land those on Pernell. Whitaker wouldn't tire out down the stretch like so many other guys, either. I'll have to think about this match, as it's very interesting.
