Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer recently offered his opinion that Amir Khan was faster than Floyd “Money” Mayweather, Jr. Are you buying it? Inside the ring, the truth is that there are two kinds of speed. One is measured and calculating. The other is just plain jittery speed.
The first involves cold blooded focusing. Nothing takes this speedster out of his game plan. He ignores the crowd and the noise. His movements are smooth and for a reason. He doesn’t waste motion. He avoids being duped or a victim of feints. He throws punches with mathematical precision, taking advantage of mistakes and traps, not wasting energy. He always seems to be in control, set and on balance. He makes the difficult look easy. Often he is described with superlatives such as genius, maestro, and poetry in motion. That’s Money.
The second kind bounces around like a pinball, first here, then there with no regard for what’s happening. He intends to overwhelm his opponent with blinding speed, but often falls short because his punches are short. His opponents (the good ones) see and feel the inadequacies of this kind of “take flight” attack. This type of jitter bug wastes a lot of energy, first flitting here, then there. He seems to be fighting scared. He overreacts. He moves too much and too far. He has the jitters. He falls prey to feints. His uncontrolled, and involuntary moves cause unintended commitments. He always seems to be trying to escape from something real or imagined. Unfortunately for him, his jittery fears have the reverse effect. Instead of taking him out of harms way, this nervous nelly and easily agitated pug sounds an alarm when there’s only a spark. The real fire comes after he has made the unwise commitment and is frozen in anticipation. It’s kind of like, “Oh Shit, I wish I hadn’t done that!” That’s Khan.
Hence, CEO Schaefer is right about one thing and wrong about another. He might be correct in saying Khan is faster than Money. But, he’s wrong in insinuating speed alone will beat Money. The truth is Money’s type of speed is the secure type, the successful, victorious type. It’s the type that deserves our attention. With the second type of speed, the phrase, “You can’t win them all” applies. When faced with top talent, this type finds his effort inadequate for the task. He is exposed and vulnerable and unprotected. The exposer soon takes advantage of the situation and introduces this past trickster to the reality of his left and right gloves. Hard blows start to overwhelm him. The skill and craftsmanship of Money’s type of speed soon shows on his opponent’s face and body. It provides visble proof or evidence of its value. Yes, “speed wins!” But, in the squared circle, it’s not runaway speed that’s the key. Rather, it is the controlled, calculated kind of speed that alters the course of the conflict. It’s Money kind of speed, the quality kind, the superior kind. It’s why “Money/Pretty Boy” Floyd is 45-0.