Trainer Joel Diaz picked Floyd Mayweather Jr. to win against Manny Pacquiao in their upcoming showdown on May 2 at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Diaz, who is the trainer of Timothy Bradley, is familiar with the fighting style of Pacquiao because his fighter has faced the Filipino boxing icon twice. Bradley took a controversial split decision win in 2012, but Pacquiao avenged the defeat with a unanimous decision win in their World Boxing Organization welterweight title fight in April last year.
When asked why he thinks Mayweather will win in the highly anticipated Cinco de Mayo weekend showdown, Diaz said Pacquiao has the tendency to relax and slow down when he starts missing punches. Bradley's trainer thinks Mayweather will make Pacquiao miss a lot with his vaunted defense.
"If Manny gives Floyd time and space, Floyd will pick him apart," Diaz told Los Angeles Daily News. "And when Manny starts missing punches he starts to tire up a little bit. You have to make him think. That slows him down."
Diaz also pointed out that Pacquiao had a lot of success in his career by baiting his opponents to engage in a brawl against him. But like during his fights against Juan Manuel Marquez earlier in his career, Diaz thinks Pacquiao will have a hard time forcing Mayweather to come to him because the unbeaten champion is too smart.
For Pacquiao to have at least a chance of handing Mayweather the first defeat of his illustrious boxing career, the Filipino champion needs to attack, but Diaz thinks that it will be hard for the eight-division champion to do so without committing costly mistakes against a fighter like the Grand Rapids native.
"Manny wants you to come to him. When that happens, it's like running into a train," Diaz said. "Floyd won't do that. For Manny to win he has to attack and that's going to be difficult for 12 rounds without making a mistake. But the mistake people make is that they try to rip Floyd's head off. They should go to the body instead."
Pacquiao, who holds a 57-5-2 record with 38 of his victories coming by way of knockout, will defend his World Boxing Organization welterweight title and will look to steal the World Boxing Council and World Boxing Association middleweight crown from Mayweather next month.
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