Daily Bread Mailbag: Mayweather, Thurman-Garcia, Joshua, More

By Stephen 'Breadman' Edwards

The Daily Bread Mailbag returns with Stephen 'Breadman' Edwards discussing a number of topics, including the career of Floyd Mayweather Jr., Keith Thurman vs. Danny Garcia, this weekend's big fights on HBO and Showtime and more.

Bread,

You'd have to agree that Wladimir would've beaten Tyson Fury with Steward in his corner. Steward gave Wladimir poise, balance and stability, a very successful partnership they had.

I agree 100% with you regarding DSG! Danny has a soft spoken way about him where everyone underestimates him, Angel diverts his opponents attention. Thurman is talking about Angel instead ignoring him and staying focused. I still think that Garcia lost a close fight to Lamont Peterson and lost bigger to Mauricio Herrera. But his subsequent victories more than make up for my perceptions.

I agree that Thurman's victory over Porter was a good victory for him but Thurman looked sloppy and helter skelter to me. He's been tighter, and more poised to me in the past and it may just be that Porter brought him out of his form. His form and discipline are going to have to be very good against Garcia to not get caught with something.

When anyone starts talking about whether Floyd is great or not-TBE, that's where his critics and fans alike think he still has something to prove! I think Floyd will fight at 40, trying to get his 50th victory, at this point the McGregor spectacle offers him the greatest reward, and even those who question the validity of said bout, will pay their $150 in hopes to see Mayweather lose, all 8,000,000 of them! And Floyd will put on a clinic!

He hasn't copyrighted TMT50 for nothing!

Bread’s Response: Yes people underestimate Danny. I definitely think it’s his demeanor. He’s a soft spoken kid. But it’s more to it. Nothing wows you about him physically.  He’s fast but he’s far from blazing. He can box but he’s not what you would consider a master boxer. He can punch but he doesn’t have one of those glossy 32-0 with 30kos records. And they have also seen him in tough and look human. So the fans, media and his opponents are never in awe of him. That’s why he’s always the underdog in these fights. Danny will never do well in hypothetical historical matchups because of this. He’s going to have to earn everything in the ring. Despite Danny being the more proven fighter Thurman is still a 2 to 1 favorite. That’s based solely on the eyeball test.

Thurman is always helter skelter. That’s just his style. He’s never going to me a neat master classmen. He reminds me of Acelino Freitas but it works for him.

Wait a minute so you think Mayweather vs McGregor generates 1.2 Billion dollars!!! My goodness what a prediction! If that is the case that fight gets made. The financial experts are analyzing this now. If what you say is true Mayweather will make a guarantee of 400 million the night of the fight. Those numbers are mindboggling.

Mayweather keeps saying he has all of these records. What records does he have as far as boxing. He doesn’t have the most wins without a loss. He doesn’t have the most title defenses. He doesn’t have the record for winning titles in the most divisions. Please tell me what records does he have besides making the most money?

Bread’s Response: Floyd ranks really high as far as number of title fight victories. I’m not sure what the record is but I do know he has about 26 title fight victories. I’m not sure if the Shane Mosley fight was for a title but it may count because it was for the lineal belt.

Floyd is one of the handful of 5 division champions in boxing history. 3 division title holders are not so special anymore but 5 is still an exclusive club. Leonard, Hearns, Pacquiao, De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather.

Floyd also won 4 lineal titles which is a serious statistic. I think he’s tied with Pacquiao for that but I have to research.

Floyd is also tied with a few fighters for winning 3 titles at junior middleweight. That’s a remarkable record for a fighter who won his first title at 130lbs. In my opinion that’s his most impressive record.

I can’t think of any more but that’s a serious resume.

Who’s your picks this weekend? I’m thinking of laying some bread down!

Bread’s Response: Frampton vs Santa Cruz and Zlaticanin vs Garcia are both hotly contested fights that all parties can win.

Let’s start with Zlaticanin vs Garcia. Zlaticanin is one rough customer. He’s short but he’s imposing. He seems very physically strong and he invades your space violently. He’s not the sharpest puncher but he’s a strong puncher. Meaning he moves you with his shots. I think Garcia would have served himself best if he fought 2 or 3 more comeback fights but kudos to him for rumbling.

As good as Zlaticanin is he’s made to order for Garcia. That’s why Garcia took the fight. I remember a while back Garcia was the #1 contender at 126. In an HBO broadcast the announcers claimed his team held him back from fighting Gamboa. If that’s true I can understand why Garcia went after Zlaticanin. He would rather you come to him...

In my opinion Garcia is one of the 10 best punchers in boxing. He has textbook technique and he has great punch variety. He’s not a speedster but he has quickness. His 1-2 is the best I’ve seen in a long time. I think he’s going to square Zlaticanin up with brutal body work. And somewhere after 8 he’s going to shock him with a devastating shot that Dejan does not expect. I like Garcia by ko in an excellent fight. Maybe even FOY candidate.

Frampton vs Santa Cruz is a tougher pick. I watched Frampton edge Santa Cruz in the 1st fight. But he didn’t dominate him. People seem to think Santa Cruz is one dimensional but it’s nothing wrong with his one dimension. And it doesn’t mean he can’t add to or enhance that dimension. This match up reminds me of Barerra vs Morales. With Frampton being Barerra and Santa Cruz being Morales.

I always thought that Morales slugged way too much vs the shorter better boxing Barrera. Barrera was slightly quicker on the draw as a counter puncher. Morales didn’t jab enough.

Santa Cruz’s adjustment is not reinventing himself. It’s simply jabbing more and increasing his volume. He can do that. He doesn’t have to turn into Salvador Sanchez. I know Frampton has more tools in his box but that doesn’t mean he will win. I watched Santa Cruz fight the fight I think he needs to fight vs Abner Mares.

I know I’m going against the grain with this pick but I see a trilogy. I think Santa Cruz has the better natural lung capacity. I think he will always do better in the 2nd half of the fight vs Frampton. If he can win 2 or 3 out of the first 6 rounds I say he takes it down the stretch. I was live at the 1st fight. Frampton boxed great and he deserved the win but the crowd had more of an effect than the live tv audience realized. This fight is on the west coast for a reason. Santa Cruz was also paired up with Garcia for a reason. They get each other’s fans. I say Frampton vs Santa Cruz will be close and controversial either way it goes. But my gut tells me Santa Cruz edges it one a SD. If you want to bet to be safe bet it goes the distance, the winner in this will be splitting hairs.

Hi Bread,

1) You wrote some nice things about Anthony Joshua in the past and I'd love to know more. Can you write more about his boxing style? I think he's made some noticeable progress in last months, especially in terms of footwork, which is crucial for such a big man... Another thing that strikes me is his composure - the way he was able to fool Charles Martin twice in the same manner to get the KO was impressive.

But people are somehow divided on him - many still see him as hypejob, other look at him as the next big thing. I'm of course leaning towards the second group, but I'd love to read your output on AJ.

What are his biggest assets?

To which HW boxer from the past would you compare him in terms of boxing style?

And finally - how will he look in fights against Wlad, Ortiz & Wilder?

2) The second thing is something completely different. What do you think about PPV model in boxing recently? How much is a weak PPV card hurting boxing? I'm asking mostly because there are 2 PPV cards coming which look absurd to me. First is Eubank jr vs Quinlan on ITV, second Cotto vs Kirkland. Don't get me wrong, these are good fights, but in no way PPV headliners... Is it really "conning the public", as Frank Warren put it? I think that looks like one of the major problems in the world of boxing in 2017 or am I going too far?

Cheers from Poland!

Casper

Bread’s  Response: Why wouldn’t I write nice things about Joshua. What has he done besides deliver in his fights and carry himself with class and dignity? “Critics” love to be negative they love to hate. Boxing has the worst critics in the sport. Everybody wants to be the told you so guy when someone loses. Joshua is next up!

Joshua has a lot going for him. He has a calm about him that will serve him well under pressure. He’s also intelligent. Unfortunately most fighters are not the sharpest pencils in the box. This kid is really smart. He’s always going to have the self awareness to give himself the best chance to win.

Physically he’s gifted. He’s tall, strong, agile and a huge puncher. I’ve seen some of his workouts. The kid is athletic he’s not just a fighter. He looks like he could have been an NFL tight end.

I do see a technical flaw though. His front leg is too straight and his head comes in front of his front knee. A good jabber will give him fits.

I think he beats Wlad. But he has to do it in the ring. After that fight ask me bout Wilder and Ortiz.

For some reason PPV numbers went down across the board after 2015. For the exception of Canelo vs Cotto there were no huge PPV events in 2016. I think it simply comes down to the purse demands of the participants. HBO and Showtime can’t afford to pay some of the license fee demands so the fights have to be put on PPV. And here in the US the live crowd attendance money is not usually enough.

What’s going to have to happen is one of the promoters is going to have to put their foot down. I think moving Cotto vs Kirkland to Texas is smart because the live crowd will have to help pay some of that big tab.

The module will correct itself on it’s own. These power brokers are power brokers for a reason. They are not in the business of losing money. They will figure it out. If I had one suggestion it would be to drop the prices and also charge for a live stream on twitter or facebook.

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