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‘Everybody knows’ – Boxing legend claims Floyd Mayweather copied his style after training together in Las Vegas

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First Ballot Hall of Famer James Toney claims Floyd Mayweather got his iconic boxing style from him.

During an illustrious professional career stretching from 1996 to 2017, Mayweather picked up 12 major world championships in five weight classes from super-featherweight to super- welterweight – beating 24 former or current world champions.

Mayweather was a master of defence – failing to lose in his 50 professional fights
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Among the long list of names he bested are Canelo Alvarez, Oscar De La Hoya, Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto.

Mayweather is widely considered to be one of the greatest pugilists of all time and famously retired with an unblemished 50-0 record.

Part of what helped him stay undefeated for his entire career was his seemingly impenetrable defence.

At the heart of his genius lay the Philly Shell, a defensive boxing stance that involves tucking the lead shoulder in toward the chin, leaning away from the opponent, and draping the lead arm across the body.

When done correctly, the stance covers the head and body from attacks simultaneously.

The style originated in Philadelphia gyms in the early 20th century, with middleweight boxer George Benton credited with popularising it in the 1950s.

Mayweather claims his style was passed down from his father Floyd Mayweather Sr, but three-weight world champion Toney insists ‘TBE’ copied it from him during their time training together in Las Vegas.

“Everybody knows Floyd Mayweather took it off me,” Toney said of Mayweather’s style during an appearance on the WiseNuts podcast.

“When I was training in Vegas, Floyd Mayweather came into the gym and he was asking me how to do things.

“Everybody knows I do it the right way anyway, Floyd looks like he is scared.

Toney was a hard man to hit thanks to his trademark shoulder roll
getty

“I stay in the pocket, he goes out of the pocket, I’m trying to break your damn face, that’s me, that’s how I fight.

“You saw me, right, you saw mine, my shoulder roll? Mine’s real, the real one to do it. I am the shoulder roll king, period.

“Hands down. It [the shoulder roll] came from Jersey Joe Walcott, Ezzard Charles – ‘The Cincinnati Cobra,’ those were the originators.

“I just picked it up and added my polish to it. See, I’m a hitter. I knock people out!”

Like Mayweather, Toney was known for his defensive craft and used a modification of the Philly shell to evade attacks with his trademark shoulder roll.

Toney had a highly successful yet long and punishing 92-fight career that started in 1988 and ended in 2017.

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Along the way, he won world titles at middleweight, super-middleweight and cruiserweight.

He also challenged for the heavyweight strap twice and was victorious the first time against John Ruiz but was later stripped due to a failed drug test. 

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