Merchant likens Mayweather-Pacquiao to Tyson-Lewis

MANILA, Philippines – Respected boxing color commentator Larry Merchant tempered the expectations of fight fans in the much anticipated May 2 showdown between undefeated Floyd Mayweather and eight-division champion Manny Pacquiao.

While some observers suggest that the megabuck showdown between two of the greatest fighters of this era is the biggest since the Ali-Frazier 1 and Sugar Ray Leonard-Thomas Hearns fight, the retired HBO color commentator sees it in a different light.

Merchant said that while the interest is high similar to the Mayweather-Oscar dela Hoya fight, the 2002 bout between heavyweight greats Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson is a much fairer comparison.

"Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao is the biggest fight since... Mayweather-Dela Hoya in terms of interest but it's more like the Lewis-Tyson in 2002," Merchant said in an interview with boxingscene.com.

Merchant thinks that the Ali-Frazier and Leonard-Hearns comparisons are a bit stretched considering that those fighters fought at their prime.

Ali and Frazier were both undefeated heading into their first showdown dubbed as "The Fight of the Century. Ali was 29 while Frazier was younger by two years. The younger legs of Frazier prevailed in a 15-round unanimous decision against Ali, who was in just his second fight after three years of absence during that period.

In 1981, Leonard was 25 when he fought Hearns in what was dubbed as The Showdown. Leonard unified the world welterweight championship after stopping Hearns, who was leading in the scorecards, in round 14 of their scheduled 15-round bout.

It took five years before the Pacquiao-Mayweather showdown was sealed. The Filipino boxing champion is now 36 and has suffered a brutal sixth round knockout loss to his Mexican arch-nemesis Juan Manuel Marquez III inside those five years. Mayweather, on the other hand, has just turned 38 and is still undefeated but showed signs of slowing down as seen in his latest win over Marcos Maidana.

The 84-year-old boxing commentator believes that the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight has more similarities to the 2002 bout between Lewis and Tyson.

Lewis, who was 36 at that time, dominated a 35-yeard-old, washed-up Tyson to score an eight-round knockout win and successfully defended his IBF, IBO and WBC heavyweight titles.

"It's because how long it took to make the fight and because in a way, Mayweather is like the heavyweight champion in America. He's the guy who filled the void of real heavyweights as a box-office attraction. So in that sense, it's fair to compare them," Merchant said.

But the legendary sportswriter-turned-TV personality believes that the Mayweather-Pacquiao bout will top the list in terms of fan interest.

"There were some other highly anticipated fights but none that maybe broke through the fight fan barrier like this one," Merchant said.

But with the whole world turning their eyes on this fight with and the stakes at an all-time high, expect both Mayweather and Pacquiao to be at their best come May 2.