The arguments continue, two days on from the unexpectedly great action fight, over who actually won on Saturday night in Las Vegas: Floyd Mayweather or Marcos Maidana. Reading what people have had to say on this particular web site, it’s clear the majority of fans feel Maidana – who lost by scores of 117-111 and 116-112 and was given a drawn verdict of 114-114 on the third official card – deserved a narrow victory.
Watching the fight again (something the three judges do not have the benefit of doing of course) I was surprised to see a different fight from the one I watched, somewhat blurry eyed (at approx 5a.m UK time, having stayed up all night) as it unfolded live. Initially, I had Mayweather a clear 117-112 winner. Watching again, I had it much closer – with Mayweather prevailing by winning the following rounds: 2, 6, 7, 9, 10 and 11, with the 3rd even. I gave Maidana the following rounds: 1, 4, 5, 8 and 12, with the 3rd even. Second time around I had it 6-5-1 for Mayweather.
So, will there be a rematch? In the interest of fairness, there definitely should be a part-2. Boxing News Magazine in the UK, via their web site, have an article by fight score collector Bobby Hunter, and Hunter has painstakingly searched around and found as many pundits’ scorecards for the fight as possible. Interestingly, of the dozens and dozens of cards he has listed – from such recognisable names as Kevin Iole, Chris Mannix, Ron Lewis, Dan Rafael, Brian Campbell, Steve Kim, Al Bernstein, Tris Dixon, Steve Bunce, Max Kellerman and Ring TV – nine cards had Maidana winning, with a number of others calling it a draw. According to 82-percent of the cards Hunter collected, Mayweather won the fight; even if many of these cards had him winning by a very close margin.
One man who didn’t officially score the fight but feels Maidana won, is former Mayweather foe Oscar De La Hoya. Tweeting yesterday that he had re-watched a number of Mayweather’s fights, Oscar says he now feels Floyd should now be 43-3, and not 46-0.
“I watched several fights again and Floyd should be 43-3 have a great Sunday,” Oscar Tweeted.
And, “You have to realize that records don’t mean anything in today’s world. Don’t forget Julio Cesar Chavez was 87-0 before he lost his first.”
When De La Hoya says Mayweather should be 43-3, he presumably is referring to his own fight with Mayweather, the first fight Floyd had with Jose Luis Castillo, and last Saturday’s Maidana clash.
Many fans will likely agree with De La Hoya. Indeed, the debate looks set to rage on for quite some tie when it comes to who won “The Moment.” Maybe Mayweather WM12 Maidana will go down in history as a constant talking point the way Leonard WS12 Hagler did.
