Mayweather vs. Maidana 2 Odds: Fight Lines and Scorecard Predictions for Rematch
With the way the first fight went, it's appropriate that the Floyd Mayweather vs. Marcos Maidana rematch is being dubbed simply as "Mayhem."
When these two touched gloves in May, it quickly turned into 36 minutes of war. "El Chino" showed absolutely zero fear of the undefeated pound-for-pound champion, coming out with a relentless, power-punching aggression that pinned Mayweather against the ropes multiple times.
"Money," as he so often does, was able to quickly adapt and control the second half of the fight on his way to a majority-decision victory, but not before battling through arguably the most grueling 12 rounds of his career.
"This was a tough, competitive fight. This is what fans want to see," said Mayweather after just his third mixed-decision win of his career, as reported by ESPN's Dan Rafael. "I want to give fans an exciting fight. Normally, I box and move. Tonight, I gave fans an exciting fight."
Maidana will once again come out as the aggressor after feeling like he was slighted in the judges' first decision. Mayweather will be ready after what was arguably the closest bout of his career.
Mayhem, indeed.
Where: MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Fight Date: Saturday, September 13, 2014
Time: PPV card starts at 8 p.m. ET.
Odds: Floyd Mayweather (1-8), Marcos Maidana (5-1), per OddsShark.com
Scorecard Predictions: Mayweather wins via unanimous decision, 116-112, 115-113, 116-112
There's no doubt that Mayweather knew Maidana's goal was to turn the first fight into a slugfest. The Argentine displayed a similar rugged style against Adrien Broner, knocking him down in the second and eighth rounds on his way to an easy unanimous-decision victory.
Still, "Money" looked a bit shell-shocked. As "El Chino" fired off a ridiculous 100 punches in the first round and then 371 over the next five, Mayweather continued to get caught on the ropes. That was getting him into serious trouble, as ESPN's Brian Campbell noted:
Don't expect Mayweather to let that happen again. After making adjustments, he dominated Maidana over the final six rounds, and he'll apply the same strategy for the entire fight Saturday.
Heavyweight boxer Eddie Chambers certainly believes so:
As for the final decision, stick with history as the key indicator.
In his last eight fights, Mayweather has just two knockouts. The last came against Victor Ortiz in 2011, and before that vs. Ricky Hatton in 2007. He knows he doesn't need to knock off anyone's head. He just uses his intelligence, lightning-fast quickness and otherworldly defense to out-box his opponents.
If you can get good odds on a knockout, it's worth the bet. As we've seen, Maidana's style opens up the fight to a lot of big shots both ways, and if the right one connects, we could certainly see someone drop to the canvas. In the first fight, there were a combined 363 power punches landed.
Nevertheless, we are talking about one of the greatest defensive fighters ever, here. In the end, Maidana just doesn't have the stamina to keep the necessary pace for a full fight, and Mayweather will frustrate him with another clinical performance.
