Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Angel Manfredy was a professional boxing match contested on December 19, 1998, for the WBC super featherweight title.
Background Floyd Mayweather Jr. had captured his first world title at the age of 21 two months prior after defeating Genaro Hernández on October 3, 1998.Mayweather Stops Hernandez on TKO, LA Times article, 1998-10-04 Retrieved on 2025-02-04 Following his victory, Mayweather quickly entered negotiations with Angel Manfredy and the two fighters reached an agreement to face one another that same month with the fight set for December 19, 1998.Top Fighters Need to Face Top Challengers, Chicago Tribune article, 1998-10-16 Retrieved on 2025-02-08 Cable network HBO signed 24-year old contender Angel Manfredy to a multi-fight deal that would see him challenge Mayweather for the WBC super featherweight title with a further six more fights guaranteed should he defeat Mayweather but only one guaranteed should he lose. Manfredy, who had been considered to face Hernández for the super featherweight title before being passed over in favor of Mayweather, bluntly stated that "if I lose, I die. My career dies."Skin of His Trade, Chicago Tribune article, 1998-11-18 Retrieved on 2025-02-08 Mayweather, already regarded as one of the top pound-for-pound fighters, entered the fight as a 5-2 favorite.Manfredy Sets His Sights on Mayweather's Crown, Chicago Tribune article, 1998-12-19 Retrieved on 2025-02-08
The fights Rahman vs. Tua The featured undercard bout featured young up-and-coming heavyweights Hasim Rahman (IBF:2nd) and David Tua (WBC:4th, IBF:9th) facing each other in an IBF eliminator, with the winner becoming the mandatory challenger to either Evander Holyfield or Lennox Lewis, who were scheduled to meet for the undisputed heavyweight championship four months later.Boxing: Baltimore’s Hasim Rahman can be seen on billboards across town, and tomorrow the heavyweight contender puts his perfect record on the line against David Tua in Miami, Baltimore Sun article, 1998-12-18 Retrieved on 2025-02-08
The fight Rahman was using his powerful jab well, out boxing Tua virtually every round. At the end of the 9th, Tua staggered Rahman with a devastating punch after the bell that dazed him. At the beginning of the next round Tua hit him with several heavy shots and the referee jumped in when Rahman was bobbing and weaving. Tua won by TKO. It was argued that it should have been a DQ following the illegal punch after the end of the 9th.
At the time of the stoppage, HBO's unofficial scorer Harold Lederman had the bout scored 87–84 for Rahman. All three of the official judges had it 89–82 for Rahman.
Aftermath The stoppage was criticized by all three members of the HBO broadcast team (Jim Lampley, Larry Merchant and Roy Jones Jr.) as premature.
The two would rematch in March 2003.
Main Event The two fighters fought a close first round with Mayweather starting off strong, using his superior hand speed and counter-punching, and controlled the first portion of the round though Manfredy did an effective job at cutting off the ring, pinning Mayweather against the ropes and landed some big shots of his own. However, in the second round, with about 40 seconds remaining, Mayweather stunned Manfredy with an overhand right, backed him into the ropes and landed around 20 unanswered punches, almost sending him down, though the ropes kept him up. As Manfredy was not fighting back, referee Frank Santore Jr. stopped the fight at 2:47 of the round.Mayweather Erases Any Doubts, NY Times article, 1998-12-20 Retrieved on 2025-02-09 This would prove to be the quickest title defense in Mayweather's professional career.
Fight card Confirmed bouts: Weight Class Weight vs. Method Round NotesSuper Featherweight130 lbs.Floyd Mayweather Jr. (c)def.Angel Manfredy TKO2/12Heavyweight200+ lbs.David Tuadef.Hasim RahmanTKO10/12Light Flyweight108 lbs.Jacob Matlaladef.Rafael OrozcoUD12/12Heavyweight200+ lbs.Maurice Harrisdef.Artis PendergrassTKO4/10Welterweight147 lbs.Alex Trujillodef.Eduardo MartinezKO1/8Super Featherweight130 lbs.Ferid Ben Jeddoudef.Carlos GomezTKO5/8Super Lightweight140 lbs.Wilfrido Ruizdef.Eldon SneedTKO4/6Super Welterweight154 lbs.David Díazdef.George KellmanUD6/6
Broadcasting Country Broadcaster HBO
References