Mayweather vs Marquez Free Live Stream

Monday, September 7, 2009 Posted by Television at 9:08 PM

Mayweather vs Marquez Free Live Stream

10 Crucial Questions for Mayweather vs Marquez Fight

Posted: 07 Sep 2009 07:30 AM PDT

The Mayweather vs Marquez fight is fast approaching. This coming September 19, 2009 at Las Vegas. But before the fight here are the few things yet to be considered by both sides. So here they are, 10 crucial questions going into Mayweather-Marquez:

1. Is Marquez too small for Mayweather? This is by far the most crucial question, one that is connected with two other factors -- speed and power -- and it all boils down to whether Marquez can fight effectively above lightweight. The former three-time featherweight title holder has never fought above 135 pounds (and to my eyes he appeared to be pushing his body to the limit at lightweight).

We know Mayweather, the former welterweight champ, fights comfortably above 140 pounds; he's fought at 146 pounds or more since stepping up to welterweight against Sharmba Mitchell in November of 2005. Mayweather has defeated Mitchell, Zab Judah, Carlos Baldomir and Ricky Hatton at welterweight. He outpointed Oscar De La Hoya at junior middleweight (and didn't lack for speed or reflexes in that bout).

While it's true that Marquez is a better boxer than Mitchell, Judah, Hatton and even De La Hoya, I have to ask myself if he could beat those fighters at welterweight -- or even in junior welterweight bouts -- and to be honest, I'm not sure. Ask me after Sept. 19.

2. Can Marquez handle Mayweather's speed? Everyone agrees that Mayweather has faster hands than Marquez, and that blazing speed is the main reason most fans, media and insiders are picking "Money" to win the fight.

However, Marquez, a natural featherweight, possess more speed than most of Mayweather's recent opponents, certainly more than the likes of the painfully slow Baldomir and the 35-year-old version of De La Hoya.

Judah, the last speed demon Mayweather has faced, gave him fits for the first five rounds of their 12 rounder, and the Brooklynite doesn't have near the focus or the complete game Marquez possesses.

The key question is whether Marquez will be able to retain his usual hand speed and reflexes fighting at an unnaturally heavier weight. Some unverified reports out of Marquez's camp suggest that the added bulk has slowed him down enough to concern his trainer, Nacho Beristain.

Both Beristain and Marquez denied that the extra poundage is weighing him down -- the trainer went so far as to declare that his fighter is looking "faster than ever" (yeah, right) -- in a recent media conference call.

But it doesn't seem likely that Marquez can carry his speed above 140 pounds. He appeared a step slower than usual in his two lightweight battles against Joel Casamayor and Diaz, both of which were up for grabs before he lowered the boom and took them out.

Marquez supporters say the Mexican master's timing is sharp enough to deal with Mayweather's speed. After all, they point out, he neutralized the quick mitts of Manny Pacquiao, who is at least as fast as Mayweather. Not so, says Pacquiao's trainer Freddie Roach.

"Marquez gave Pacquiao trouble because he knows how to fight a southpaw," Roach told RingTV.com recently. "Whenever Manny hurt Marquez or dropped him in both bouts it was because his speed allowed him to get through."

3. Can Marquez hurt Mayweather? One of Mayweather's most underrated attributes is his toughness. The five-division titleholder has seldom been hurt in a prize fight and he's never been down (unless you count the technical/off-balance knockdown Judah scored in the second round of their bout, which referee Richard Steele missed).

Mayweather's defensive prowess enabled him to completely avoid the best shots from bombers like the late Diego Corrales and Arturo Gatti, but he absorbed more than a few shots from the hard-punching likes of Phillip N'dou, Jose Luis Castillo, Judah, De La Hoya and Hatton without missing a beat.

If those naturally bigger fighters couldn't hurt Mayweather, what chance does Marquez have?

I'm probably in the minority but I think Marquez can threaten Mayweather provided the extra weight hasn't slowed him down too much. The reason is the accuracy of his textbook power punches.

Blunt force wildly directed at Mayweather's head won't do much because of his ability to block and turn with punches, but clean shots to the point of the chin can yield results.

DeMarcus Corley isn't known for his punching power, but he's a sharpshooter with hand speed, and this combination enabled the lefty to buzz Mayweather early in their 2004 encounter. Marquez might be the best precise-punching boxer Mayweather has ever faced. His uppercuts are like heat-seeking missiles that find the soft spot on his opponent's chin.

Recently, Marquez has been planting his feet more than did in the past in order to get more leverage on his combinations. The result has been sensational knockouts of fighters who previously had never been stopped, such as ultra-tough Thai Terdsak Jandaeng, Casamayor and Diaz. Marquez's 11th-round TKO of Casamayor was especially impressive given that the iron-chinned Cuban vet had survived the best bombs of Acelino Freitas, Castillo and the late Corrales.

And if he finds he can't dent Mayweather's chin there's always the defensive wizard's body, which leads us to the next question…

4. How bad is Mayweather's rib injury?

The original July 19 date for this matchup was postponed when Mayweather sustained a reported rib injury in training during the second week of June. The rumor was that Mayweather's ribs were injured during a sparring session, something the fiercely proud fighter vehemently denies.

Mayweather will not provide details to how the injury occurred, simply calling it a "freak accident," but he has repeatedly told media that it didn't happen in sparring. However, boxing writer David Avila reports that one of Mayweather's sparring partners, a junior middleweight journeyman named Juan Pablo Montes De Oca, took credit for the injury.

"Mayweather hired him for his pressure and his durability," Avila, who covers boxing for the Riverside (Calif.) Press-Enterprise, told RingTV.com. "He doesn't win much, but he's tough as nails and he's a good body puncher. I asked him about the sparring session after a fight he had Las Vegas in early July (a 10-round loss to Carlos Nascimento) and he told me it happened. I'm not positive, but I think he said that it was a left to the body that hurt Floyd."

If this is true, Mayweather is going to have to be careful in protecting his mid section. Rib injuries, especially fractures and cartilage tears, are very painful and they usually take at least six weeks to properly heal. Avila's gym information is almost always reliable, so if Marquez fans have been praying for an Achilles heel that their man can exploit, this might be it.

5. Is Marquez getting old? The Mexico City native celebrated his 36th birthday last month, and that's not just a number. Marquez has been around a long time (16 years in the pro ranks) and he's had a lot of fights (55) that have taken their toll.

Once upon a time Marquez dominated his foes with such poise and precision that he was labeled a "boring" fighter. Not anymore. Age and wear and tear from his grueling 12-round battles with Pacquiao have had an impact on him. Marquez is still a master technician but he's no longer able to go unscathed against elite fighters. In fact, he had to take his lumps and work hard to knock out second- and third-tier fighters like Jandaeng and Jimrex Jaca.

However, despite his life-and-death battle with Diaz, Marquez should not be viewed as shopworn by any stretch of the imagination. Clean living and a Spartan work ethic has preserved him to an extent.

This is not like Julio Cesar Chavez's first fight with De La Hoya, where the older fighter was burned out from 98 pro bouts and a wild lifestyle while the younger man was 10 years the vet's junior and in his absolute physical prime. At 32, with almost 13 years in the pro biz, Mayweather is no spring chicken. And many wonder how sharp he will be at this stage of his career after more than a year layoff, which leads to the next question…

6. Will Mayweather be rusty? Since turning pro in 1996, Mayweather has never had more than eight months off between fights -- until now. How will almost 21 months off (his last fight was against Hatton in December of 2007) effect a boxer who relies so much on reflexes and speed?

Mayweather and his team say the layoff was just what the doctor ordered. He insists that the time away from the ring and training camps gave his chronically sore hands and often-injured shoulders a chance to heal. You know what? I believe him.

I don't think Mayweather will show too many signs of inactivity on Sept. 19 because I don't believe he ever intended to stay retired. (He simply wanted to avoid the pressure of defending his welterweight crown against the Miguel Cotto-Antonio Margarito winner and wait for the right opportunity to come back and make the most money with minimal risk). Thus, I don't think he ever left the gym during his "retirement" or hiatus or whatever you want to call it (I call it a strategic withdraw), and reports I've received from his camp for Marquez support my hunch.

The trainer of one Mayweather's current sparring partners recently emailed me with this gym report (sorry for the caps):

"FLOYD IS MORE THAN READY FOR MARQUEZ. HIS HAND SPEED, REFLEXES, CONDITIONING, TIMING AND RHYTHM ARE ALL THERE.

"MY FIGHTER TOLD ME THAT LAMONT PETERSON SHOWED UP AT FLOYD'S GYM TWO WEEKS AGO TRYING TO MAKE A NAME FOR HIMSELF. AFTER VERBALLY ABUSING EACH OTHER FOR 30 MINUTES WHILE PUTTING ON THEIR HANDWRAPS, THEY WENT EIGHT 4-MINUTE ROUNDS WITH 15 SECONDS REST, WHICH WAS A SPARRING SESSION WORTH PAYING FOR ACCORDING TO MY FIGHTER. AFTER EIGHT ROUNDS, LAMONT COULDN'T GO NO MORE BECAUSE OF FATIGUE. THAT'S WHEN FLOYD REALLY STARTED TAUNTING HIM SAYING TO HIM 'ANOTHER ROUND, ANOTHER ROUND!' WHEN LAMONT REFUSED TO GO ANOTHER ROUND, THAT'S WHEN THE VERBAL ABUSE WENT TO RECORD LEVELS IN THE MAYWEATHER CAMP. NAME CALLING AND VERBAL ABUSE CONTINUED TO BE DIRECTED AT LAMONT FOR ANOTHER 10 MINUTES."

Nice to hear that Mayweather hasn't lost his competitive edge.

And by the way, Floyd, I know you're a secretive sort, but there's no escape from my gym sources. (But hey, at least it's positive news.)

7. Who wants it more? There's been a lot of talk about Mayweather's motivation for this fight. Some have suggested that the only reason Mayweather has returned to the sport is because of a financial crisis headed by his $6.2 million debt to the IRS.

I've been more than happy to add to this line of thinking by unofficially changing his nickname from "Money" to "Needs Money" in my mailbags, but the truth is that Mayweather is one of the proudest boxers I've ever covered. He approaches the sport and his career with the utmost seriousness. While he probably does "need money," I don't believe that he would ever take a fight just to get paid. Mayweather will always be a competitor and his pride pushes him to train just as hard for the likes of Henry Bruseles as he does for De La Hoya. Nobody cherishes Mayweather's undefeated record more than he does.

There's no way Mayweather isn't hungry to win this fight.

And since we're on the subject fighting just for money, it should be noted that Marquez's career-high payday was the main reason he and Beristain conceded to the bout's contracted weight.

However, Marquez is every bit as proud as Mayweather, and unlike the 1996 U.S. Olympian, he has an entire nation rooting for his victory on Sept. 19 (which falls on Mexican Independence Day weekend). I think it's safe to say that he's properly motivated for this fight.

8. Who has the better corner? Beristain has trained 12 world titleholders, including Marquez and brother Rafael, as well as hall of famers Ricardo Lopez and Daniel Zaragoza. Aside from Floyd Jr., Roger Mayweather has trained … um … Cornelius Lock… and um, Wes Ferguson?

Roger can talk all the garbage he wants about Angelo Dundee at press conferences. Dundee is in the hall of fame (deservedly so) and there's no way Mayweather's getting in as a trainer.

The edge in corners obviously goes to Marquez but the recent reconciliation between Floyd Jr. and Floyd Sr. is definitely a plus for Mayweather.

The presence of the father, who laid the boxing foundation for his son, in Mayweather's camp will add focus to Junior's defensive preparation, which is bad news for Marquez.

9. Who is the superior boxer? I consider Mayweather and Marquez, along with Bernard Hopkins and Ivan Calderon, to be the best active boxer-technicians in the game. So who's style will prevail on Sept. 19?

Mayweather has the edge in defense. Marquez has the better offense. Mayweather is quicker and more fluid, but Marquez is more active and accurate. However, Mayweather has the better legs and lateral movement, and this ability might decide the fight.

Two of Marquez's four losses were 12-round decisions to mobile boxers -- Freddy Norwood and Chris John. Marquez fans will tell you that those losses were controversial (and the Mexican won both fights on my very unofficial scorecard) but there's no denying that he was troubled by their lateral movement and lack of forward aggression.

Well, we all know that Mayweather is not afraid to stink out an arena in order to ensure that he gets the "W." He did it with Castillo (in the second fight), Baldomir and De La Hoya. Why wouldn't he do it with Marquez if he finds the smaller man to be tough enough to take his best shots?

So what if he gets booed or criticized by "hater" boxing writers like Yours Truly? He'll stay undefeated and set up even bigger events for 2010, which leads us to the last question.

10. What does a win mean for either? Beating a well-known, undefeated U.S. Olympian is better than winning a world title for Latino warriors (as Chavez learned after beating Meldrick Taylor and Trinidad was happy to discover after his victories over De La Hoya, David Reid and Fernando Vargas).

If Marquez beats Mayweather he will finally one-up his contemporaries, Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales, and may very well approach Chavez-level reverence in Mexico.

If Mayweather defeats Marquez, he will have accomplished what most expected of him, which means he probably won't receive the credit he will undoubtedly believe he deserves. However, if he absolutely dominates Marquez -- or is the first fighter to stop the proud Mexican -- he might earn that No. 1 pound-for-pound consideration he so covets. But if he outpoints Marquez over 12 rounds, clearly winning seven or eight rounds while surviving a few rough spots, Mayweather merely makes his undefeated record sparkle a little more and sets himself up for a much bigger fight with the Pacquiao-Miguel Cotto winner.

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