IBR on The Cruelest Sport

“For years, Mayweather events have been little more than grand exhibitions of sly matchmaking and wearisome promotion. Because “The Moment” involves Maidana, however, this card will appeal to anyone who appreciates an injection of meritocracy into a world that regards connections as tantamount to worth. Since losing a lopsided decision in his February 2012 welterweight debut, where the clutch-and-grab tactics of Devon Alexander not only stymied Maidana but also, incredibly, managed to make him boring, Maidana has reeled off four consecutive wins. In those wins, among them stoppages over fellow roughnecks Jesus Soto-Karass and Josesito Lopez, Maidana exhibited his power and vulnerability, while revealing technical improvements that, in all fairness, are usually ingrained by the amateurs. Better late than never, of course, whether it is a fighter learning to jab or earning a payday that changes his tax bracket.”

Read Cruising: Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Marcos Maidana Preview on The Cruelest Sport.

IBR on The Cruelest Sport

In his essay “The Tyranny of Visions,” Thomas Sowell writes that visions are inescapable because of the limits of knowledge (one might argue this limitation holds their appeal as well). The crucial question for Sowell is “whether visions provide a basis for theories to be tested or for dogmas to be proclaimed and imposed.” With Mayweather, the vision has grown as the tests have receded. This is not entirely his fault of course, as he has run through the gamut of realistic challenges and is facing arguably his toughest available test next (barring some overweening request that he face a middleweight). But there are glaring omissions in Mayweather’s impressive record—like Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito—and asterisks abound: neither Shane Mosley nor Miguel Cotto were in their primes when Mayweather agreed to face them. And saying that Mayweather would have beaten these men at their best is not much of a rebuttal—such conjecture only reiterates the vision. The point is that the opportunity to test the vision of Floyd Mayweather, Jr., has largely passed, leaving us with the proclamation of dogma.

Read Vision Thing: On Floyd Mayweather Jr on The Cruelest Sport.

IBR on The Cruelest Sport

It was a fight short on drama, one that prompted a smattering of boos among the throng gathered at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. And yet, there is a compliment buried in this criticism. For in so easily dismantling Robert Guerrero over twelve one-sided rounds on Saturday night, Floyd Mayweather, Jr., displayed a fighting prowess that, even at age 36, remains remarkable. One can take issue with some of the names on—and off—his ledger and disapprove of his preference for avoiding rather than delivering damage, but the drama of a Mayweather fight is most often lost in the yet-to-be traversed expanse between his competition’s ability and his own. And that, no matter how you look at it, is high praise.

Read Unanswered Prayers: Floyd Mayweather W12 Robert Guerrero on The Cruelest Sport.