Towards the end of his career, either because of jealousy or downright hatred at his amazingly effective style, some boxing fans decided that Floyd Mayweather Jr. wasn’t one of the greatest boxers of all time. To some, Money Mayweather took advantage of a system that allowed him to sit back, relax, dominate lesser opponents and then count the dollars that landed in his bank account.

Although there’s some truth to the belief, no boxer goes undefeated in the sport, heck, becomes one of the greats, without having major skills. Check out how Pretty Boy became one of the greatest fighters in boxing history so you can get ready to make your bets against his Floyd Mayweather odds for the upcoming showmatch. 

How Floyd Mayweather Jr. Became One of the Greatest of All-Time

Money Mayweather Jr.’s work ethic is legendary

Unless you’re someone who knows a lot about boxing, you might watch Floyd fight and think he didn’t have to train hard. But just because Mayweather made it look easy, it doesn’t mean that it was easy.

Nobody trained as hard for a fight as Floyd Mayweather Jr. His work ethic is legendary. Floyd would have not one, not two, but sometimes three training sessions in a single day. And he’d work on everything. 

The jab, the one-two, feet placement, everything. Floyd earned his greatness by working harder than anyone else he ever fought. 

Mayweather Jr. developed a specific style based on defensive movements that led to offense

Floyd’s preferred style was to use defensive movements that led to offense. Floyd would counter off the shoulder roll, which is something few boxers ever master.

But that wasn’t the only defensive technique he’d use. He’d also goad his opponents towards him by walking backward and into the ropes. Once the opponent moved towards him, Mayweather Jr. would land a punch, move to the side, and then land a combination.

One of Money Mayweather’s signature defensive to offensive moves was to use his forearm to push his opponent’s head down. Then, before the referee could break it up, Floyd would lift the forearm, push his opponent to the side, and then land a right cross.

Pretty Boy was also a master at pretending he was hurt. He’d lift his gloves, turn so that his side faced his opponent. Then, as his opponent stepped around to get a clear shot at Floyd’s head, Money would throw punches with force. 

It takes incredible skill to move your feet in position to throw the punches that Floyd threw. Don’t think for a moment that Mayweather Jr. just ran around the ring and waited for his opponent to tire himself out.  

Floyd Mayweather Jr. understood boxing’s marketing aspects

None of that would have made Floyd Mayweather one of the greatest if he hadn’t understood the marketing aspects. Terence Crawford should be considered one of the greatest of all-time. But we don’t call him one of the greats yet because he didn’t declare himself to be one of the greats.

Floyd was brash and disrespectful of his opponents. Mayweather Jr. understood how to sell a fight, though. He knew how to get people to pay enormous pay per view prices to watch Floyd dominate overmatched opponents. 

Mayweather Jr.’s showmanship is on par with Muhammed Ali’s. Nobody can doubt it’s one of the reasons Floyd became one of the greatest of all time. 

Although most every boxing fan on the planet agrees Mayweather Jr. will beat Logan Paul on Feb. 20, many of us, most boxing fans, will pay the fee to watch the fight. Why? We’ll pay because it’s Floyd Mayweather Jr. Any other boxer against Paul and we’d say we’re wasting our time.

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