| 16 September 2011
Floyd "Money" Mayweather Jr.
Birthplace: Grand Rapids, Michigan
Resides: Las Vegas, Nevada
Age: 34
Height: 5' 8"
Reach: 72"
Current World Titles Held: None
Former World Titles Held: WBC Super Featherweight (130 lbs.), Ring Magazine, WBC Lightweight (135 lbs.), WBC Light Welterweight (140 lbs.), Ring Magazine, WBC, IBF Welterweight (147 lbs.), WBC Light Middleweight (154 lbs.)
Professional Record: 41-0, 25 KOs
Record in World Title Fights: 18-0, 9 KOs
Record in Fights Going 12 Rounds: 11-0
Record at Welterweight: 6-0, 2 KOs
Notable Wins: UD12 Juan Manuel Marquez, SD12 Oscar De La Hoya, TKO10 Diego Corrales
"Vicious" Victor Ortiz
Birthplace: Garden City, Kansas
Resides: Oxnard, California
Age: 24
Height: 5' 9"
Reach: 70"
Current World Titles Held: WBC Welterweight
Former World Titles Held: None
Professional Record: 29-2-2, 22 KOs
Record in World Title Fights: 1-1
Record in Fights Going 12 Rounds: 1-0
Record at Welterweight: 8-0, 7 KOs
Notable Wins: UD12 Andre Berto, KO3 Vivian Harris, TKO2 Mike Arnaoutis
Notable Losses: Marcos Maidana TKO6, Corey Alarcon DQ1
Analysis:
Unless you've only become a boxing fan during the last 16 months, you've seen Floyd Mayweather triumph over all comers. Yet even if you've watched every televised fight of his undefeated career, you're still going to see something you've never witnessed before come Saturday night.
That's because when Mayweather steps into the ring at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, he'll be taking on a young champion whose best days may still lay ahead of him in the form of WBC welterweight titleholder Victor Ortiz. Not since Floyd beat Diego Corrales in 2001 has he faced a similar type of challenge.
Even then the comparison falls apart, because Mayweather was only 23 when he battled Corrales. Now 34, he'll try to fend off a man who is ten years younger and equipped with equal parts ferocious power and boundless confidence.
Not that his self-assurance came easy. Ortiz had his heart and willpower questioned during a 2009 stoppage loss to Marcos Maidana, a defeat that made it appear he simply gave up. But he's come on with a vengeance since then, most recently displaying a granite chin to go with his offensive gifts during a thrilling slugfest with Andre Berto.
Mayweather, of course, is rarely mentioned alongside the word slugfest, because he doesn't have to be. The premier boxer of his era, especially on the defensive side, Floyd has scarcely dropped a round over his last three fights, though they came spread out over nearly four years.
Ring rust and advancing age haven't had any affect on Mayweather's skills so far, and it's expected that he'll use those and his vast edge in experience to dictate the spacing and tempo of the fight. It seems nearly impossible to beat him on points, so Ortiz likely won't try, instead attempting to impose his strength and punching power.
Will Mayweather look as sharp as he ever has and put on a boxing clinic? Or will the explosiveness and continuing development of Ortiz prove too much? Whichever man can find a more satisfactory answer to those questions is likely to have his hand raised in victory in Vegas.
Mayweather's Winning Strategy: Box... Then Box Some More
We stole this advice from renowned trainer Freddie Roach, who gave just the first word when asked what he thought Floyd needed to do to win. We added the rest because it's likely that Mayweather will need to keep it up for 12 rounds to win.
Mayweather has no peers when it comes to defense, counter-punching ability and timing. His fast hands and superior reflexes don't hurt either.
He's proven more than willing to let those advantages play out for 12 rounds, occasionally frustrating those who would rather see him go for the kill. That's actually smart in this case, as Ortiz showed against Berto that he can shrug off some serious bombs.
Mayweather was also stunned in the second round of his otherwise dominant victory over Shane Mosley in his last fight. Fortunately, Mosley was too old and stiff to follow up, but Ortiz won't have that problem. If Mayweather shows that he's hurt at any time on Saturday, he's likely to have a storm of knockout shots he'll have to weather.
The best way to avoid that is not to get hurt in the first place. No one does that better than Mayweather, and he's well equipped to box his way to a points win against Ortiz.
Ortiz's Winning Strategy: Never Stop Hustling
It's beyond foolish to think that Ortiz can win by out-working Mayweather in the traditional sense. Still, he'll have to be willing to keep moving, keep throwing and generally stay extremely busy to make his foe uncomfortable.
It may mean walking through some shots to get in close. It's also probably going to involve some stretches where he's much less accurate than usual.
That's normal when fighting someone as elusive and crafty as Mayweather. Ortiz can't be frustrated - he needs to display the same bravado in the ring that he's shown during the build-up to the fight.
If Ortiz can wear Mayweather down (body punches may help here) or get him thinking too much, it may leave the same kind of opening that Mosley found. And if that happens, Ortiz needs to seize the opportunity, unleashing the power that he has in both hands.
Most importantly, Ortiz needs to be mentally prepared to hustle for 36 minutes of action. He may need all of them to get one chance at a career-defining upset.
