The superfight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao is drawing nearer, with boxing fans from all over the world eager to see the match between two great names in the sport.
Pacquiao is looking to become the first opponent of Mayweather that would give him a loss in his record, while Mayweather will, of course, look to keep his record unblemished.
Mayweather is known as a great tactical fighter and a defensive specialist that uses his intelligence to wear his opponents down and score match wins. Pacquiao, on the other hand, is known for his offense, backed by relentless speed and power punches. For Pacquiao to have any hope in beating Mayweather, what must the Filipino boxer do?
Boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya believes that for Pacquiao to win, his movement inside the ring is very important. The footwork of Pacquiao will be the key in beating Mayweather, who has never faced a left-handed boxer that can move in and out and side to side like Pacquiao. De La Hoya thinks that Pacquiao should jab through the defense of Mayweather and then attack with his powerful left hand right through the middle.
De La Hoya also said that Pacquiao needs to come out blazing and win the first two or three rounds of the fight, which will force Mayweather to become the aggressor, which is something that Mayweather does not like to do.
Shane Mosley, who was able to land two of the strongest punches that Mayweather has ever received in his career in their match in 2010, believes Pacquiao can win by punching from angles and sustaining his attack throughout the entire fight.
In a special HBO production that also features De La Hoya and Mosley, boxing icon George Foreman thinks for Pacquiao to win, he will need to concentrate on winning the match one round at a time instead of looking for the knockout win.
Left-handed boxer Robert Guerrero, who Mayweather handily beat in 2013, said that Pacquiao needs to be very aggressive, but should not be frustrated when his punches do not connect.
In line with Guerrero's advice, most of the boxing world believes that Pacquiao will have to throw a massive number of punches against Mayweather to pull out the win. Saul Alvarez, whose only loss came at the hands of Mayweather, believes Pacquiao needs to throw around 100 punches per round.
Legendary boxer Roy Jones Jr. thinks that Pacquiao has to punch with combinations but not more than three punches, as Mayweather is the best counter-puncher in the sport.
"There is no one way to beat a guy like Mayweather," said great welterweight boxer Sugar Ray Leonard, saying that Pacquiao should make Mayweather respect the power of his punches.
However, despite all the advice and analysis, Pacquiao still has a tough assignment of dealing Mayweather his first loss.
47-1 or 48-0? We will find out on May 2.
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