Undefeated five-division champion Floyd Mayweather Jr on Saturday claimed a unanimous decision in a feisty encounter against Marcos Maidana to successfully defend three world titles and improve his record to 47-0.
In just the second rematch of his 18-year career, the 37-year-old American came out on top on all three scorecards, retaining his World Boxing Association and World Boxing Council welterweight and light-middleweight belts.
The victory was another masterful showcase of evasion from Mayweather as he danced out of danger and used his lightning counterpunching to great effect.
Photo: AFP
“I bring in a game plan, I bring in a team and we gave the fans what they wanted to see,” said Mayweather, who earned a guaranteed US$32 million for his night’s work. “He’s extremely dirty, but rugged. It is another fight, another victory, time to move on. The saga continues, there are a lot of great fighters out there.”
The 12-round bout was not without controversy, with Mayweather accusing Maidana (34-5) of biting him, while the American tagged the Argentine with a low blow late in the bout, then taunted him as he recovered in a neutral corner.
Mayweather, whose only other rematch came in 2002 against Jose Luis Castillo, executed the perfect game plan, frustrating the 31-year-old Argentine brawler with his speed and sharpness.
“I’m very happy to have fought twice against Floyd Mayweather, I think I did a terrific job,” Maidana said. “Many have fought against him and I don’t think they did what I was able to do. I thought I did enough to win. If the judges like a fighter who runs like Floyd, there is nothing I can do about it.”
Maidana employed the attacking tactics that served him well in the majority decision loss in May, but failed to do any damage as the elusive Mayweather ducked and weaved away from his hard-hitting opponent’s punches.
By the eighth round, an increasingly frustrated Maidana appeared to bite Mayweather’s arm when they were locked together in a clinch.
The referee halted the action so Mayweather could receive attention in his corner as he yelled at Maidana, who paid little heed to the fuss as he waited passively for the bout to restart.
“I never bit him, he was rubbing my eyes with his glove,” Maidana told reporters. “Maybe he had his glove in my mouth, but I did not bite. Maybe he thinks I’m a dog, but I did not bite him.”
The result, with one judge scoring the bout 115-112 while the other two had it 116-111 in the champion’s favor, immediately renewed speculation about a long-awaited super-fight between Mayweather and Filipino great Manny Pacquiao.
“I got to go back and talk to my team, I’m not ducking or dodging no opponent,” Mayweather responded when asked about the possibility of facing Pacquiao. “If a Pacquiao fight presents itself, let’s make it happen.”
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