On May 3rd of this year, the MGM Grand Garden Arena played host to thirty-six minutes of in ring action between Floyd Mayweather and Marcos Maidana. When the final bell had rung, two of the three judges scorecards had ensured Floyd Mayweather’s unblemished record remained intact. September 13th and the MGM, will once again facilitate Floyd Mayweather and Marcos Maidana, to settle verbal and physical disputes over a scheduled 12 rounds for the WBC welterweight and WBC/WBA light-middleweight titles.

A five city cross-country promotional tour kicked off the build up for Mayweather vs. Maidana part 2. With both camps verbally sparring, hectoring jabs were the order of the day. ‘Money May’ seemingly sustains his hectic lifestyle with relative ease. Exuding an aura of confidence, meshed with a healthy dose of arrogance, Floyd has rarely faced genuine adversity in his professional career. Marcos Maidana provided patches of adversity early on for Floyd to contend with in their first bout. As he had on 45 previous occasions, Mayweather made the necessary adjustments to secure his 46th straight career victory.

Maidana had put forth an effort that exceeded what most had expected heading into the bout. Despite this fact, few truly expect ‘El Chino’ to pull off the upset on the second time around. If we examine the history books, similar situations can be exhumed to examine.
In 2004, Roy Jones Jr’s career point was similar to Floyd Mayweather’s presently. Boxing’s premier pound for pound fighter and seemingly an unstoppable force, Jones headed into a rematch with Antonio Tarver following a difficult first bout. No one could have seen Jones’ demise as he crumbled to the canvas, suffering his first career loss. In the final stretch of a fighter’s career, the end can be swift and brutal.

With no apparent chink in Floyd’s armour, the May-Vinci code has remained unsolved. Maidana’s rugged style had proven effective at points in the first bout. ‘El Chinos’ patented over hand right that had brought much success against Adrien Broner, had effectively snuck over Mayweather’s shoulder roll defense early on. A crease Floyd will look to iron out in the rematch.

Mayweather shifts through the gears and makes in fight adjustments with ease. Floyd’s deposits to Maidana’s paid off later in the fight, as Marcos slightly slipped off pace. Expect Mayweather to touch downstairs with frequency this time around. With both men landing the right hand, Floyd landed the eye pleasing shots of the two off his lead right hand. Maidana will need to grasp a hold of the fight early and refuse to relinquish his grip. If Maidana can offer a gritty performance whilst sustain an unhesitating pace, this fight may have an interesting plot down the stretch.

On Saturday night, Floyd Mayweather will walk to the ring for the 47th time, another chapter in a storied career. A fight closer to writing that final chapter. Undefeated. Seemingly infallible. Virtuoso in the ring. Precipitous outside the ring. A mix as history has shown, can prove fatal to a fighter’s career. In the build up to the rematch, Floyd’s spats outside the ring have been well publicized. With Mayweather’s attention superficially drawn in many directions, Maidana could prove to be in the right place, at the right time, to end Mayweather’s incredible unbeaten streak, however unlikely as it seems.