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Yes. Logan Paul can beat Floyd Mayweather.
Can Logan Paul beat Mayweather?
You read that right. The answer to your question is yes.
Before you scroll down to the comments to express your disagreement (and I encourage you to share your views on this), just hear me out.
The cardinal rule of fighting – Invincibility is a myth
Firstly, let’s get this one out the way. One of the basic tenets of fighting is that anything can happen in a fight. If history has taught us anything, it’s that even the greatest warriors can be defeated. We’re human, after all. No human is invincible.
Logan Paul, as inexperienced as he is as compared to Mayweather, can still catch him with that miracle punch. Remember when 45-year-old George Foreman knocked out 26-year-old Michael Moorer? Now I’m not comparing Logan Paul to Big George; I am merely stating that one punch can turn an entire fight on its head. Logan Paul could land what some people (not me) in the combat sports world call a ‘lucky punch’ and knock Mayweather out cold.
Why? Well, I now hark back to the cardinal rule of fighting – No one’s invincible. Anyone can be beaten.
How can Logan Paul fight Mayweather
Now let’s get into the strategy, shall we? No strategy is foolproof. But we, as martial artists, as fighters, go into every fight with the mindset of an optimist. Like MMA icon and UFC legend Nate Diaz says – “Kill or be killed”.
I’ve broken down the strategy into 4 points noted below.
1. Logan Paul has to go Zen and steer clear of Floyd Mayweather’s mental warfare
Logan Paul has to approach the fight with a strong mindset. Zen mode is the need of the hour for Paul. The boxing legend is a master on the microphone and could destroy Logan Paul mentally before they even step into the ring.
However, by zoning Mayweather out and adopting the Zen mentality of not caring about anything that Mayweather says, Logan Paul can bring about a stalemate in the mental warfare aspect of their highly-awaited exhibition boxing match.
2. Logan Paul's uppercut vs KSI
Logan Paul doesn’t get enough credit for the success he had in his white-collar boxing match and professional boxing bout against KSI, with the first fight ending in a majority draw and the second ending in a split decision victory for KSI.
Paul almost knocked KSI out with a series of brutal uppercuts in the latter stages of the fight in their professional boxing matchup. The referee deducted two points as he noted that Paul held the back of KSI’s head to land the second clean uppercut. Regardless, many in the combat sports world believe that the point deduction was unnecessary and cost Paul on the judges’ scorecards.
Logan Paul has to use his uppercut to hurt his shorter opponent. Paul is 6’2” with a 76-inch reach, whereas Floyd Mayweather is 5’8” with a 72-inch reach. Should ‘Maverick’ find ‘Money’s’ chin with those uppercuts he stunned KSI with, all bets are off. Mayweather is much smaller than KSI and Paul.
3. Logan Paul has to use Dirty Boxing – Clinching, rabbit punches, punches on the break, etc.
Floyd Mayweather knows how to deal with dirty boxing tactics. Don’t be misled by the term ‘dirty boxing’, for dirty boxing was, is, and will always remain an integral part of the sport of boxing. And Mayweather isn’t unbeknownst to this. He’s dealt with dirty boxing from the likes of Marcos Maidana and emerged victoriously.
But what makes the Logan Paul fight different is the incredible size difference between Paul and Mayweather. Not only is Paul about half a foot taller than Mayweather, but he also has a four-inch reach advantage on the latter. Additionally, Paul weighed in at 199.4 pounds for his last fight, whereas Floyd Mayweather weighed in at 149.5 pounds for his previous professional boxing match against Conor McGregor back in August 2017.
Logan Paul needs to clinch as much as possible, as he did against KSI, and make Floyd Mayweather carry his weight. Paul clinching up with Mayweather will surely wear the smaller fighter down.
The second aspect of this dirty boxing approach is rabbit punches. Well, two things – rabbit punches and punches on the break.
Logan Paul needs to hold Mayweather in the clinch with his left arm, an underhook would be great, and slam the right hand into Mayweather’s head. The punches, as heavyweight boxing kingpin Tyson Fury has often stated, need to be aimed at the back of the ear. Paul is much taller and heavier than Mayweather and must target the back of Mayweather’s left ear with his right hand.
Alternatively, Paul can also shift focus and grab an underhook or perhaps even an overhook with his right hand. The left hand can then be used to target the back of Mayweather’s right ear. Granted Paul’s right-hand uppercut is what badly hurt and almost finished KSI, but mixing things up is paramount to outfox an intelligent pugilist like Mayweather.
Furthermore, punches on the break – hitting Mayweather when the referee separates them from the clinch – would most definitely be something Logan Paul ought to consider.
Mayweather himself knocked out Victor Ortiz during a referee separation when Ortiz believed they were touching gloves. Mayweather pretended to touch gloves and instead used the opening to brutally KO Ortiz. Logan Paul could end up using this trick against Mayweather, in what could be a highly ironic and undeniably chaotic KO stoppage.
4. Logan Paul has to use feints, low-powered long-range punches, and keep his chin tucked
Floyd Mayweather will use the first couple of rounds to get his reads on Logan Paul. As of this writing, the exact number of rounds for their fight is yet to be confirmed. Let’s assume this fight is 12 rounds; worst-case scenario for Paul, who’s heavier and runs the risk of gassing out and falling victim to his own weight.
In this case, Logan Paul needs to exercise an abundance of caution right from the beginning of the fight. Paul needs to keep feinting shots and draw reactions from Mayweather. Besides, when he does touch Mayweather, it should only be with low-powered jabs or right hands without planting his feet.
Be it a jab, straight/cross, uppercut, hook, or bolo punch (actually, he shouldn’t even think about throwing a bolo punch), Logan Paul needs to keep them low-powered and stay light on his feet. Paul should focus on touching Mayweather up rather than hurting him. If he plants his feet and throws with power, the shot will be slower, and Mayweather would counter him with increasingly venomous combinations.
In a nutshell, Logan Paul has to feint and jab (from both the orthodox and southpaw stance if need be), before entering the pocket with Mayweather and clinching up. Under no circumstances is Paul supposed to plant his feet and throw leather with Mayweather inside the pocket.
Logan Paul’s feints and jabs will set up his entry into close range. Paul must clinch up with Mayweather at every given opportunity and then focus on landing the rabbit punches and hold Mayweather’s head down to land the uppercuts. Moreover, Paul mustn’t hesitate to punch Mayweather on the break, i.e. when the referee breaks up their clinch.
Dirty boxing is your friend, Logan Paul.
This is fighting. Nothing is impossible. The 25-year-old Logan Paul is a real threat to the 43-year-old Floyd Mayweather Jr. When leather finds chin, logic goes out the window, and all hell breaks loose. Nothing is impossible.
Do you feel Logan Paul can defeat Floyd Mayweather Jr. come February 20th, 2021? Sound off in the comments.
