Washington D.C trainer Barry Hunter -best known for guiding the careers of Anthony and Lamont Peterson as well as heading the Headbangers Amateur Boxing Team- gave his breakdown of the looming fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr(47-0, 26KO’s) and Manny Pacquiao(57-5-2, 38KO’s) in Las Vegas on May 2nd.
Speaking with Fighthype.com, Hunter began by summarizing the kind of fighter he feels Mayweather is.
“I think that Floyd is one of the more cerebral fighters in the game today. I think that what you can attribute a lot of his success to is his willingness to stick to his game-plan. Floyd’s not a confrontational type of fighter. I’m saying that to say he is a boxing guy first and a fighting guy last, which is smart as to how his career ended up being as long as it was.”
Mayweather is fighter of conviction. Even on those rare occasions where he finds himself in a slightly difficult spot, he has faith in the effectiveness of his abilities; in his first meetings with Jose Luis Castillo and Marcos Maidana, the first few rounds against Zab Judah and the fight that elevated his name to new level of marketability against Oscar De La Hoya. In each bout, it appeared to as if Mayweather may finally succumb to the will of another until he didn’t. He makes slight adjustments, enough to offset his opponent before imposing his preferred rules of engagement on proceedings.
According to Hunter he is at his flawless best in the situation most fighters dread, under heavy fire, and it is his uncanny ability to stay calm in the eye of the storm that will enable him to beat Pacquiao when they meet.
“Floyd has a very easy time with people that are aggressive and attack him, taking the role of the matador. I think, looking at Floyd, if he sticks to that style of fight I think he’ll be victorious.”
We all remember what he did to Ricky Hatton.
There is nothing to suggest Mayweather will stray from the formula that has brought him fame and riches, as well as allowing him to leave this game with a level head intact. His style is one steeped in intelligence in a sport where the heart all too often overrules the head in the pursuit of eternal glory. Mayweather’s legacy will be ensured by statistics, not war stories.
Hunter feels that if Mayweather allows himself to leave the true path, he will give Manny Pacquiao a chance he never had in this fight. If anything this underlines how dominant Hunter foresees Mayweather being on May 2nd.
“If he do anything different, you gotta give Manny a chance. He’s a volume puncher type of guy, and he loves confrontation. If he can lure Floyd into that style of fight, he could flip the script.”
