I had never watched it back on TV, but to mark its anniversary, I did just that, to see if my memories stand the test of time and if my initial reaction was fair or not. 

The verdict, 10 years later: it certainly wasn’t a spectacular fight, but whether or not you consider it “good” or entertaining depends on your level of appreciation for defensive, counter-punching masterclasses, of which this was certainly one. 

OK, the fighters are in the ring, the introductions and instructions are over, so let’s review. 

Round 1

Mayweather establishes his range early with his jab and looks to counter as Pacquiao steps forward. A Mayweather counter right lands flush, and another. Mayweather is controlling the distance and timing in a comfortable opening round.

Round 2

Pacquiao backs Mayweather into a corner but straight counter rights from Mayweather keep him at bay. Pacquiao is ducking, moving, but Mayweather is the one who is throwing. Now Pacquiao mauls Mayweather into a corner and throws a flurry but nothing lands clean. 

Round 3

Every time Pacquiao takes a final half-step to close the gap and unload, Mayweather anticipates, moves and twists him around. Pacquiao looks for an angle to attack Mayweather in the corner but Mayweather ties him up. Mayweather just misses with a right to the jaw. Pacquiao is showing upper body movement but his feet are too static. A flurry from Pacquiao at the bell rallies the crowd.

Round 4

Pacquiao dials back his offense a little and has his first effective spell of the fight, unleashing a sequence with Mayweather in a corner then backing off and resetting. A counter left from Pacquiao lands with authority and backs Mayweather to the ropes. Pacquiao opens up, but Mayweather maintains a high guard and blocks most of the incoming. A combination from Pacquiao ends with a hook that lands, as the Filipino has his first good round.

Round 5

After four rounds of encouraging Pacquiao to come toward him, Mayweather walks toward Pacquiao as the round opens and steps into his punches, backing up Pacquiao with jabs and strong straight rights. Soon thereafter, however, the pattern reverts to that of earlier rounds, with Mayweather luring Pacquiao onto his counters. Whether stepping forward or retreating, Mayweather is controlling the real estate of the ring.

Round 6

Pacquiao lands a four-punch sequence on Mayweather’s arms, but can’t break through the American’s high guard. The rest of the round follows the same pattern: Pacquiao attempting and failing to crack Mayweather’s defense, and Mayweather responding with jabs and counter rights.

Round 7

Mayweather lands a counter jab that is stiff enough to knock Pacquiao backward. Mayweather is using deft footwork to evade Pacquiao’s rushes easily, but the crowd is now expressing its desire for more action. A straight right/left combination from Pacquiao knocks Mayweather back. Pacquiao lands a hook as Mayweather slides to his left along the ropes.

Round 8

Pacquiao catches Mayweather transitioning between defensive stances and catches him with a straight left. A counter right lands for Mayweather. Lead left hooks from Mayweather. Mayweather is in economy mode: slipping, moving and countering effectively.

Round 9

One of the more intense spells of the contest so far, as Pacquiao looks to land and Mayweather responds with sharp counter right hands. Pacquiao’s assault is slowing down as Mayweather slips his punches and counters. 

Round 10

Short hook from Pacquiao, who is continuing to have a hard time landing clean. Mayweather has his timing down now and Pacquiao needs to find a way to disrupt his rhythm. Mayweather, his back to the corner, potshots Pacquiao as the Filipino looks for a way in. Mayweather slides effortlessly out of the range of Pacquiao’s punches.

Round 11

Mayweather comes out more aggressively to start the round, and then lands a solid uppercut as he entices Pacquiao to come forward. Mayweather is now seemingly unconcerned about the Pacquiao offense as he lays on the ropes and all but encourages his foe to throw and leave himself open.

Round 12

Neither man is showing the requisite urgency to finish with a bang, although Pacquiao is the one who really needs to. But he simply appears to have no more idea how to find a home for his punches in round 12 than he did in round 1. As he cruises to the finish line, Mayweather continues to dictate the pace and distance. Mayweather winds down the fight by dancing around the ring as Pacquiao follows him around, trying and failing to land a glove on him. 

Aftermath

From ringside on the night, I scored the fight 117-111 Mayweather, and I did the same on the rewatch. (Official scores were 118-110 and 116-112 twice.)

I am inclined to be more charitable the second time around than I was on May 2, 2015. It was not a great fight by any means, but it was an impressive masterclass of defensive acumen, ring generalship, timing, and counterpunching from Mayweather. The much-hyped clash between the two best boxers of their generation turned out to be a one-sided romp, and that’s credit to the American’s physical ability and supremely crafted skills.

At the time, I remember one of my biggest gripes being that Mayweather appeared to have the fight in the bag in the closing stages but chose not to turn up the heat in a way that would have put the bow on his performance and given the crowd entertainment value; but that was never Mayweather’s modus operandi, at least not above 140 pounds. And really, on rewatching, the thought was: why should he have? What he was doing was working, and the onus was on Pacquiao to change it up.

Was it a bad fight? That’s subjective, but it’s safer to say it was a disappointingly uncompetitive contest. Mayweather’s performance, however, was objectively impressive, even if the evening was less entertaining as a result.

Not every superfight can have the excitement of Marvin Hagler-Thomas Hearns or Hearns-Ray Leonard – or even be an entertaining pummeling like Crawford-Spence. Some are more like Leonard-Hagler, or Felix Trinidad-Oscar De La Hoya. Or indeed Mayweather-Pacquiao: a tremendous event with a virtuoso performance, but not one to get the pulses racing, and probably not one to put back into rewatch rotation.

Kieran Mulvaney has written, broadcast and podcast about boxing for HBO, Showtime, ESPN and Reuters, among other outlets. He presently co-hosts the “Fighter Health Podcast” with Dr. Margaret Goodman. He also writes regularly for National Geographic, has written several books on the Arctic and Antarctic, and is at his happiest hanging out with wild polar bears. His website is www.kieranmulvaney.com