Mayweather vs. Pacquiao: Latest Comments and Prediction for Superfight

The road to any boxing match features pavements lined with trash talk, speculation and more from both camps, the media and beyond. 

Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao isn't any normal boxing match.

Folks know Money. He's a trash talker more often than not and a strong contrast to the quiet, ever positive Pac-Man.

Whether the globe wanted perhaps the most anticipated fight in history this late in each boxer's respective career or not, it's what rests before observers. Below is an early look at the rumblings from both camps and a prediction.

Preview and Prediction

Since this fight is unlike any other, it's only right the buildup is, too, at least when it comes to both competitors.

Mayweather, at least for now, has been rather quiet in the trash-talk department. In fact, Money himself even told the media he no longer needs to trash talk to garner attention for himself.

"I've always thought that," Mayweather said, per David Mayo of MLive.com. "At first, it was like, one way or another, by communication or by my boxing skills, you will watch me, you will see me, I will be seen. But I'm in a position now I don't have to do that."

Call it a bit of a shocking turn of events. Perhaps a strange fight just has a different impact on both men.

Believe it or not, Pacquiao's been the one most in the spotlight. When not sparring, he's hard at work on other endeavors such as music videos:

Don't mistake Pac-Man's musical pursuits for a lack of seriousness in his approach to the bout, though. Like Mayweather's closed camp, Pacquiao's, for the first time in a long time, is limited to those closest to him, as trainer Freddie Roach told Yahoo Sports' Kevin Iole:

"

Manny's always been very open and so forth. But this is such a big fight and getting the game plan right is so important. I felt it's critical we fight the right fight and to tell you the truth, it's been a lot better. Manny's getting a lot of great work in and I think it's been his best camp in a while because of it.

"

The only major thing coming out of Mayweather's camp right now is damage control about an injury rumor.

Per the rumblings, Money sustained injuries during heavy bag work, per Bev Llorente of ABS-CBN News North America. Strength coach Alex Ariza, though, shot down the rumors in a hurry:

"

I think anybody who has hit a heavy bag or anything, they scrape some skin off the knuckle, and I don't see anything big deal about it.

I didn't hear anything about a rib injury. I think I would know, considering I'm the strengthening coach. We haven't missed any training session. We haven't taken any breaks which are not the regular breaks that we normally take, so nothing is out of the ordinary.

"

Of course, even if there were an injury, the public wouldn't know much about it until it affects in-ring performance.

Speaking of the in-ring aspect.

It almost feels like this is a road the boxing globe knows well.

Pacquiao's the sort of fighter who takes a volume approach and has both the energy and speed to never take his foot off the gas. It works and is pleasing to the casual eye, but it also sounds quite familiar—Marcos Maidana just attempted the same thing twice in a row and lost each encounter.

The globe made a whole mess about Maidana hurting Mayweather in their first bout. This general misunderstanding can occur when a fighter like Maidana in desperation throws 858 total punches to Mayweather's 426, per BoxRec.com.

Folks see the flurry and make conclusions, but using those same numbers, Money landed 54 percent of his shots. Maidana? Just 26 percent, hence the outcome.

Perhaps it isn't fair to Pacquiao. He is a southpaw, which can perhaps give Mayweather some trouble, and he is Pac-Man, after all.

But it's not as if Mayweather has given the globe a reason to believe he will lose—even when his opponent more than doubles his output.

Pacquaio will come out as aggressive as always and hit from odd angles, but the only avenue to a victory may be a knockout. The fleet-footed Mayweather won't have an issue avoiding a barrage, and what's worse, Pac-Man's recent outings have showcased a vulnerable chin when a good counter-puncher breaks through the onslaught.

This happens to be Mayweather's strength. He's not going to get caught, and as long as this one goes the distance, it's a routine decision as always.

Prediction: Mayweather defeats Pacquiao by unanimous decision.