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5/29/16

Throughout history, the combat sports community has tried to impose unwritten rules and standards on fighters as a way to guide them towards a successful combat sports career. Some of the unwritten rules and standards that the combat sports community has tried to impose on fighters are being able to connect with fans, have exciting fights and above all else win. Even though those rules and standards are there to serve as a guide for all fighters, it has actually altered the way media/fans perceive fighters who have a similar fighting style. This is indeed the case with Floyd Mayweather and Erislandy Lara because when Floyd Mayweather is fighting he tends to alternate between three punching sequences 1. throw the left jab and take two or three steps back to move out of range. 2. Throw the lead left hook and take two or three steps back to move out of range and 3. throw the left jab followed up by a straight right hand. Floyd likes to alternate between these three punching sequences because he wants to keep his opponents from being able to guess what punch is coming next thus reducing the possibility that his opponents will be able to avoid the punch and set up a counter before he can move out of range. As a result of this, most of his opponents spend the majority of rounds blocking punches or missing their own punches, which leads to Mayweather winning rounds because he is more active and landing more punches. The only potential issue with this fighting style is that Mayweather will give up ring control because when he is taking two to three steps back to move out of range he sometimes forgets to move forward after his opponent finishes the punch or combination. This leads to him spending a substantial amount of time on the ropes, which restricts his lateral movement thus giving his opponents an easier target to hit. But he makes up for this by holding his opponents, turning his body to the right so that his left shoulder takes the punch or he will duck under the punch.

Floyd Mayweather isn't the only person who uses this type of fighting style and/or strategy as Erislandy Lara uses a similar style and/or strategy. In fact, when Lara is fighting he tends to alternate between three punching sequences 1. throw the right jab and take one or two steps back to barely move out of range. 2. throw the right jab followed up by a straight left hand and 3. on occasion he will throw the lead right hook and take one or two steps back to barely move out of range. Just like Mayweather, Lara will alternate between three punching sequences because he wants to keep his opponents from being able to guess what punch is coming next thus reducing the possibility that his opponents will be able to avoid the punch and set up a counter before he can move out of range. As a result of this, most of his opponents spend the majority of rounds blocking punches or missing their own punches, which leads to Lara winning rounds because he is more active and landing more punches. The only major difference between the two fighters is that Mayweather has more speed than Lara, which allows him to move completely out of range of his opponent’s punches where Lara sometimes is stuck in range and is forced to use traditional method of blocking punches, which is using the arms/ hands to cover the upper body.

While these two fighters have a similar fighting style, the public perception of them is vastly different as Floyd Mayweather is perceived to be the golden meal for fighters meanwhile Erislandy Lara is perceived to be a good fighter who offers almost no upside to potential opponents. One can attribute the difference in perception to what language they speak as Lara only speaks Spanish, which means that he has to use a translator to talk to the media and/or fans. As a result of this, the media and/or fans don't get to hear every word he is saying or what tone he is using which makes it harder for him to capture the attention of fans. For example in the post fight interview Lara's last fight Jim Gray asked him who do you want next and he replied by saying "I am ready to fight Golovkin, Canelo or anybody else" but the translator answered the question by saying "I am ready to fight Canelo or anybody else" thus missing an opportunity to put some extra pressure on Golovkin to take the fight and possibly gain the attention of some more fans. This also tends to play a role in determining the outcome of some of his fights because if he is in a close fight the judges will often give the fight to the more popular fighter because it will maintain and/ or increase the health of the sport.

On the other hand, Floyd Mayweather speaks English which allows the majority of  the media and/or fans to understand every word he is saying or what tone he is using. Which makes it easier for him to get the attention of the general public thus the fans will develop an emotional reaction to him much quicker than Lara. Since he is an English-speaking fighter who can get the attention of the general public there is an increased likelihood that judges will give him the benefit of the doubt if he is ever in a close fight because they do not want to hurt the health of the sport by taking the zero off his record.

(Ps. I am of Dominican descent that is how the difference between what he said and what the translator said)