In hindsight, Canelo Alvarez never stood a chance. The early buzz was that we were in for a close fight. This man would pose the biggest threat that the champ had seen in years. The young Mexican pugilist prodigy. But on Saturday night in Vegas, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, Canelo was taught a brutal lesson by the greatest boxer of the millennium: Floyd “Money” Mayweather.

There isn’t much doubt any longer that Pretty Boy Floyd will be remembered as an all-time great. Maybe not “The Greatest”, as he has occasionally himself claimed, but undoubtedly the best pound for pound boxer of his generation. And, no, I’m not overlooking Pacquiao. Mayweather is a five-division world champion, winning eight world titles and the lineal championship in three different weight classes, undefeated in 17 years as a pro. He’s the highest earning sportsperson on the planet, with a career income estimated at over US$350m. He is 45-0.

But what makes Floyd Mayweather so great? Above all it’s his intelligence and his defence. No boxer in the world has a better knowledge of the sweet science of boxing. Floyd knows exactly how to counteract any situation, though he rarely rescinds control in a fight. He reads opponents, and manipulates them into playing up to his own strengths. Floyd is a defensive boxer, but not a negative one. Just look at the Alvarez fight. The first couple of rounds were spent feeling it out, establishing himself and his opponent, and just sitting back a little. He waited for Alvarez to make a move, inviting him, goading him to do so. But so quick on his feet, so sharp in anticipation is Floyd that as soon as Alvarez looked to launch an attack, he’d dodge or he’d block, and launch a flurry of short, shrill counter punches, running up the early score with his jabs. As Canelo fell behind in the minds of the judges (well, most of them), he was forced to be more and more aggressive, which exposed more holes in his defence. And Floyd rarely misses. His connection rate was almost at 50%, while Alvarez was punching air at only 22%. Canelo Alvarez actually fought a pretty good fight too, yet he was no match for the enigmatic Floyd Mayweather. And that left sided shoulder roll that he does – how do you even combat that!?

From the very start of his career, his father stressed that the key to a long boxing career is to avoid taking hits whenever possible, and this has always been a primary strategy of Floyd’s. He moves around a lot, always so light on his feet. Dancing and weaving through punches, his elusiveness is masterful, his movement graceful. He frustrates and exhausts opponents into mistakes, always working tirelessly himself until the final bell. Even at age 36 he is one of the fittest fighters going around. Mayweather believes that this is what he owes his success to most of all. He puts in the overtime hours in the gym. He has never not been fit enough to see out a plan or to finish a fight. When you only compete once or twice a year, preparation is EVERYTHING.

And Floyd Mayweather fights that rarely because he picks his bouts so carefully. Since his first title, he has never fought more than 3 times in a calendar year. Perhaps the biggest criticism of his career is that he never fought Manny Pacquiao at his peak. Manny wanted the fight, but it never materialised (probably due to Floyd’s doubts that Manny was clean of PEDs). Now that Manny has dropped off the pace that fight will almost certainly never happen. The accusation was that Pretty Boy Floyd dodged the fight to protect his unbeaten record. It’s a shame that the fight never happened, because beating Pacquiao would have set that record straight for sure.

Out of the ring he has his problems. Most notably the 90 days he spent in prison for domestic assault. He comes across as obnoxious and arrogant, and he’s all about them dollar bills. But his villainous persona is just another carefully crafted strategy from as master schemer. He came from very little: a father in prison and a heroin addicted mother. Now he’s richer than all who tried to hold him down. And, frankly, it doesn’t matter how big of a dickhead he is. He’s a champion, and undefeated at that. Floyd has never met a challenge he couldn’t overcome.

So what’s next for “Money” Mayweather? His Showtime contract expires in a couple years, by which time he’ll be 38. He has intimated that he’ll retire then, but right now, he’s showing no signs of age. His next fight will probably be in May. His opponent is undecided, though Danny Garcia and Amir Khan are early contenders. 5 more wins would put him at 50-0 which would take ahead of Rocky Marciano’s legendary unbeaten career mark. The unbeaten streak is overrated though – Ali lost 5 times, Holyfield 10 times and Sugar Ray Robinson, perhaps the greatest fighter ever, lost a staggering 19 times. A streak like Floyd’s can sometimes overshadow the genius responsible for it. Read below the zero. Floyd Mayweather Jr is the greatest boxer of this generation.

- Wildcard