Zab Judah “He’s not the same guy . . . he’s ten times better”

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zab-judah-workout-3Zab “Super” Judah believes that Floyd “Money” Mayweather is ten times the fighter he was when the two squared off in April 2006.

Judah has reportedly sparred with Mayweather in preparation for his clash against fellow pound-for-pound star Manny “Pac-Man” Pacquiao. Rumors circulated from the sparring sessions but what is known for sure is that Judah is supremely confident in Mayweather’s chances in beating fellow southpaw Pacquiao.

“Floyd is looking tremendous, great hand speed, great power, great everything,” Judah said in an interview with FightHype on YouTube. “Come May 2nd baby, ‘Money May’ gonna turn it up.”

Back in 2006 Judah fought Mayweather in an event dubbed “Sworn Enemies”, a year before the pound-for-pound king became the Pay-Per-View king against Oscar De La Hoya.

Then, Mayweather was a dwarf star, primed to go supernova as he was coming off consecutive stoppages against Arturo Gatti and Sharmba Mitchell. Judah was fresh off a twelve round decision loss to Carlos Baldomir and returned three months later to lose to Mayweather. “Super” Judah gave “Money May” all he could handle in the opening rounds until the proverbial Mayweather adjustments were made, extending his record to 36-0.

However, Judah believes the Mayweather he has shared the ring with recently is a different animal than the one he suffered his fourth professional loss against.

“He’s not the same guy . . . he’s ten times better,” Judah said. “He’s very smart, he almost gets inside your body and controls you. He knows what he’s doing. We’re starting to call him the scientist.”

Judah laughed after the interview, but the thought of a fighter who can control everything his opponent does in the ring isn’t funny, it’s scary. Mayweather is known for making his opponents fight his fight, and he is revered for his uncanny ability to avoid punches. Even some of the top pressure fighters in the sport have averaged about 20 percent or less against the self proclaimed “Best Ever”.

It’s impressive that Mayweather has been able to sway his old rival, but that’s just what Judah is, old. Judah is blessed with similar talents as Mayweather but as a 28-year-old challenger he was no match for “Money”. So now that he’s nearing 38 and suffered five more losses, two by knockout, it’s no wonder why Judah is in awe of his rivals powers, given that Mayweather has taken far less damage and has become more of a craftsman over the years.

Judah has lost three of his last five fights but the former undisputed welterweight champ showed enough grit in losses to young champions like Amir Khan (when Khan held the WBA junior welterweight strap) and Danny Garcia, that it’s very believable he could hold his own in sparring sessions with the best in the sport.

He may not be challenging for pound-for-pound status anymore, but Judah is as real as it gets in boxing. He blasted his co-promoter Golden Boy Promotions at a press conference when he felt his team was being mistreated, and he took a swing at Roger Mayweather when he entered the ring after a low blow in the ninth round of his fight against Floyd.

Judah would certainly not talk up a fighter, especially his old nemesis, unless he believed it.