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To see the Mayweather post-fight press conference courtesy The RING, click here.
The man is not half as crafty addressing tough questions about taking tough opponents as he is inside the ring slipping punches.
The first reporter addresses something that bugged me the last time I saw Floyd comment on it. When he was recently asked (I believe in a FightHype interview) if he would fight Shane Mosley down the line, Floyd said something to the effect of, "Shane Mosley? Five losses Shane Mosley?"
It was a ridiculous statement. Yeah, Shane Mosley's lost five times. Let's look at Floyd's last few opponents, shall we?
| Date | Opponent | Opponent's Record (At Time of Fight) |
|---|---|---|
| 2009-09-19 | Juan Manuel Marquez | 50-4-1 |
| 2007-12-08 | Ricky Hatton | 43-0 |
| 2007-05-05 | Oscar de la Hoya | 38-4 |
| 2006-11-04 | Carlos Baldomir | 43-9-6 |
| 2006-04-08 | Zab Judah | 34-3 |
| 2005-11-19 | Sharmba Mitchell | 56-4 |
| 2005-06-25 | Arturo Gatti | 39-6 |
So, in short, who does he want to fight? One guy on that list had a spotless record, and it was Hatton, who was coming up in weight. Marquez came up in weight by two divisions with four losses, and then Mayweather couldn't even be bothered to so much as make the catchweight they agreed upon.
He dodges the Shane Mosley question here, calling him a good fighter, but saying simply that Mosley has a fight coming up. That fight (Andre Berto on Jan. 30 is what I assume Floyd is referencing) isn't even finalized, and is four months away. Mayweather, if he wanted to, could interrupt that right now.
And I do understand he may want to wait to see the Cotto-Pacquiao winner, but what are the odds he fights that guy? Seriously. The money will be an issue, Bob Arum and Floyd don't have good feelings for one another, and if Cotto wins, what makes anyone think Mayweather suddenly wants to fight Miguel Cotto? He didn't want to fight him before. It might be worth a bit more money if Cotto beats Manny, but it was always a money fight. The offers Floyd got might have been a little lower than Top Rank could have really done, let's put it that way.
It may seem like I'm unnecessarily harping on Mayweather, but I'm really not. He's earned every question that anyone has about him, about his guts, his willingness to take stiff challenges. When's the last time Floyd took an opponent you thought might actually beat him? Castillo in 2002? Corrales in 2001? Between the Castillo rematch and the Oscar fight, he barely lost a round.
This also -- without question -- does speak to how good he is, and also why he takes some of the flak that he does. On the one hand, he's so talented and such an amazing boxer that of course you don't think he's going to lose his fights. On the other hand, since he's so good, it's hard to expect anyone to not expect just a bit more sometimes.
I find Mayweather fascinating and frustrating, and I also genuinely enjoy watching him fight a lot of the time. He does things you simply can't do without his natural talent, the boxing skill that was included in his DNA. He just has a habit of saying things that don't add up. He wants to be seen as the best, which is another way of saying he wants everyone to like him. But too often we find ourselves wanting more out of Mayweather, and it's not selfishness on the part of the fans any more than it is when we want to see the best opponents against Manny Pacquiao, Shane Mosley, Miguel Cotto, Juan Manuel Marquez or anyone else at the top of the sport.
Welcome back to boxing, Floyd. Seriously. But the tough questions you were avoiding in 2007 are still there in 2009.
