Lucas Matthysse discusses Mayweather, Pacquiao, and Danny Garcia

Lucas Matthysse has become one of the most talked-about fighters in the sport recently, and his stock has never been higher than it is right now, following his three-round wipeout of Lamont Peterson on May 18 in Atlantic City.

The win was exciting enough to prompt Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer to take the mic in the ring after the bout -- not a common thing for him to do, mind you -- and declare Matthysse the next Manny Pacquiao. Matthysse says he's flattered by that comparison, but that's not his goal:

"I feel very happy that people are comparing me to Manny Pacquiao, but what I really want to do is fight him."

Matthysse (34-2, 32 KO) won't get the chance to face Manny any time soon, since the two work for rival promoters and, in turn now, rival TV networks. The logical next foe for Matthysse is WBC junior welterweight titlist Danny Garcia, who was in attendance this past Saturday night to see Matthysse's overwhelming effort:

"It feels very good [to have Garcia watch that KO]. I think he looked a little bit worried. I pointed at him and told him 'I'm coming for you next.' If he's a great champion, if he's a great fighter, then he's going to want to take the fight."

Garcia (26-0, 16 KO) and Matthysse are both managed/advised/whatever by Al Haymon, who has generally been reluctant to pit his fighters against one another. We did see a recent fight between Haymon guys when Peter Quillin trounced Fernando Guerrero, but I believe that said more about the internal view of Guerrero's potential than anything major changing with how Haymon does business.

And then there's pound-for-pound ruler Floyd Mayweather. Would Matthysse move up to fight him? Absolutely, he says. Is Mayweather-Matthysse interesting? Absolutely, I say. It's a hell of a lot more interesting than a lot of possible Floyd fights. (For the record: I'm going to be banging this drum pretty hard. I don't even care, y'all.)

Does Matthysse beat Garcia? Most of you say yes. Does he beat Pacquiao? (Let's just play along for kicks.) I say yes. WHAM BAM! Matthysse! Does he beat Mayweather? Fuck it, I say yes. WHAM BAM! Matthysse!

Or else I'm purposely winding some of you up like an ESPN Talking Head. We'll see. Who knows? Life is crazy, you guys.