HOLLYWOOD—The more punches Manny Pacquiao throws, the higher his chances of inflicting a first loss on Floyd Mayweather Jr.
This simple formula was laid down by some boxing pundits, including Hall of Fame commentator Al Bernstein, on how Pacquiao should approach his showdown with Mayweather on May 2.
Bernstein even set a benchmark of 800 punches or more for Pacquiao to beat the defensive master that is Mayweather.
Simply put, Pacquiao must overwhelm the unbeaten American with the sheer volume of punches he’d throw every round.
Of course, it would even be better if Pacquiao unleashes more power punches. Those which can hurt Mayweather, disrupt his rhythm, and send him into retreat mode.
If Pacquiao’s flurries connect, or even a fraction of them land, they will, presumably, wobble or rattle Mayweather.
That’s how Pacquiao dominated the likes of Antonio Margarito, Oscar de La Hoya, Shane Mosley, Joshua Clottey and Chris Algieri.
These fighters are all taller, if not bigger than Mayweather, and yet they failed to match up with Pacquiao, who has also become a more accurate puncher in recent years.
Against the 5-foot-11, 164-pound Margarito in 2010, Pacquiao was a beast, unloading 1,069 bombs, 474 of which found their mark. The bout was so lopsided, that by the 10th round, Pacquiao was asking the referee to cut it short to prevent further damage.
Pacquiao was busier against Clottey, throwing 1,231 punches, but was far from being accurate with only 246 hits. In his last five fights, his power punches were a major factor as they were thrown with an average accuracy of 40 percent.