Does Floyd Mayweather really struggle against left-handed fighters? That's what UFC Chief Dana White seems to think. When Mayweather squares off against Conor McGregor, Mayweather will be facing a southpaw stance. Regarded as a striker in the MMA world, McGregor in traditional terms operates in a southpaw stance. In MMA, southpaw fighters usually train hard on their cross and left low kicks, making them hard and dangerous.
According to MMA Fighting, Dana White said that he believes Mayweather has a "kink in the armor" when it comes to southpaws. White said, "Floyd, traditionally, if you want to say there’s ever been a kink in the armor with that kid, it’s with southpaws, and Conor McGregor is an absolute knockout artist. When he hits you, you go."
That theory goes back to Mayweather's streak in 2004 until 2006 when the 49-0 man appeared to struggle against Zab Judah and Demarcus Corley. Hero light and light middleweight world champion Vinny Paz told MMA Fighting, "Floyd’s fought some of the greatest left-handed fighters in the world and not only didn’t they beat him, they had trouble touching him. Conor is a really good MMA guy, but in the boxing arena, he doesn’t have great skills. He’s going to be looking for that big punch, and Floyd never gets hit by that. Only one, maybe two times, and when he does, he gets himself back together. Floyd is the only one who can make it look like a close fight because his defensive skills are so incredible."
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While Mayweather's last opponent, Andre Berto, said in the same article that Mayweather's struggles against a southpaw were in issue early in his career but he has now overcome them.
McGregor's southpaw stance was cited as the reason he lost to Nate Diaz in the UFC in March 2016 in a Fightland article. The argument was that because Diaz was also a southpaw, McGregor struggled to get off his powerful left straight punch. On August 26, that won't be an issue because Mayweather operates in a traditional stance. So that's one less thing to worry about for team McGregor.
H/T: MMA Fighting
H/T: Fightland
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