Here are stats
http://boxrec.com/media/index.php/Jose_Luis_Castillo_vs._Floyd_Mayweather_Jr._(1st_meeting)
Yes Floyd landed and threw more jabs however that's irrelevant since his jabs were not effective, they didn't slow down or stop Castillo from getting on the inside and landing power shots and more effective punches.
I'd say that is what contributed to the scores being the way they were. To throw that many jabs and have that high a percentage, yet throw fewer power shots, within the same percentage of your opponent and not get knocked out?
Jab stats are only relevant if the jab is controlling and dictating the tempo of the fight but his were not that night. Castillo controlled the fight. Definitely the most uncomfortable fight of Floyds career where he wasn't in control.
Again, if a person is landing that high a percentage of jabs a person can be said to control the fight. Was Floyd in control the
entire fight? No, was Castillo? No.
I'd argue that his numbers are going up because he's aging, not using his feet like he used to and he's forced to fight more. Perfect example is the first Maidana fight; he had no business struggling with a guy of his caliber.
Again, his numbers are either averaging out or they are increasing because he's adjusting to what his opponent is doing. Floyd is using his feet, Floyd isn't moving his upper body and moving his head and neck like he used to.
I also agreed with you; I don't think simply throwing a 1000 punches is much of a plan, there must be more to it, like Castillo didn't simply plod forward and throw punches, no he had an excellent game plan by mixing up what he did to get inside sometimes he worked off the jab, he used A LOT of head movement, he got very low to get insid, he threw punches from all sorts of odd angles, etc. Basically the plan was to mix it up, be unpredictable while applying pressure (unlike guys like Guerrero who obviously had a very limited weapons and would try and fail at the same thing over and over again).
And how did that work out for Castillo in the end? He lost. How did it work out in the second fight?
There are multiple good plans that would be effective the problem again is the talent.
What are these good plans? Time and time again people say there is a plan but the guy is still undefeated.
For example,, I always thought a stylistic nightmare for Floyd would be a tall fighter with a long jab who boxes from the outside which would force Floyd to be the aggressor. But there are no Tommy Hearns type fighters around. Floyd's great pull counter would be ineffective against a guy like that and by forcing Floyd to be the aggressor you're putting him outside of his comfort zone, making him play a game that isn't his best.
How is that a plan when the success would depend on a fighter being
tall with a
longer jab/reach? All of what you said requires a fighter that is physically different from the avg fighter in that weight class, which Hearns was. And Floyd isn't outside of his zone being the aggressor. Again, look at the stats for Cotto, Canelo and Ghost. What do you see there?
On the flip-side, an intelligent and highly skilled offensive fighter with great stamina would also give him problems (think a prime Roberto Duran). These types of guys don't exist right now between 140-154. There are plenty of aggressive fighters but none that are as highly skilled or as intelligent.
This I agree with and said in the past that I would have Duran edge him out. But it would also depend on what Duran showed up.
Right now there is no
plan to beat the guy.
