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FLOYD MAYWEATHER, JR.  FLOYD MAYWEATHER, JR. ...obnoxious as always |
Who Needs the Best Boxer On Earth? Not Me!
of TheColumnists.com
America is known for its freedom of speech rules. When it comes to Floyd Mayweather, Jr., the professional prizefighter, that is a shame. He should be denied free speech. By that, I mean he should be charged $1,000 every time he opens his obnoxious mouth and the proceeds divided among the boxing fans of the world.
That, of course, would mean we'd all get rich quick because there's no way this boob is going to keep his mouth shut, no matter how big the fine.
For those who aren't familiar with Mr. Mayweather, let me point out that he is often regarded as the best prizefighter, pound for pound, in the world. That means, for his weight, he is the best fighter anywhere, from flyweight to heavyweight.
Okay, I'll give him that. He's better than good. He is undefeated in 40 fights. He thoroughly outclassed Juan Manuel Marquez, a three-time world champ, in an HBO pay-per-view 12-rounder on Saturday night after being retired for the past 21 months. If there was any rust on him, he shook it loose on his way to the stadium in Las Vegas and it was still in his shorts.
Because he had "retired" nearly two years ago, Mayweather was the champion of nothing when he entered the ring Saturday night. Two years ago he was the world welterweight champ. He also is no longer the unofficial "pound for pound" king. That amorphous title is now held by Manny Pacquiao of the Phillipines, the current welterweight king--the same little guy who hammered "Golden Boy" Oscar de la Hoya to pieces and demolished Ricky Hatton on his way to world fame in giant mega-money bouts.
Naturally, Mayweather wants to reclaim his "pound for pound" title by beating up on Pacquiao, which everybody hopes will be a superfight sometime in 2010. During the HBO telecast, the ringside experts seemed to think it's a cinch for Mayweather to accomplish all this because he's bigger and smarter than Pacquiao, who's the closest thing to a human buzzsaw ever put in a boxing ring. Marquez had given Pacquiao all he could handle in two previous bouts, so Mayweather's easy time with Marquez seems to suggest he'd breeze against Pacquiao.
I am not a fan of Mayweather. You may have guessed that already. It's not that I don't appreciate clever boxers who can punch. Actually, I'm quite fond of them. In the case of Mayweather, it's his stomach-turning arrogance and scornful approach to virtually everything.
For example, when he talks about himself he refers to himself as "Floyd Mayweather." In other words, he never says, "I think I'm too fast for that guy." Instead, he says, "Floyd Mayweather is too fast for that guy." He sees himself as a third person, so he naturally refers to himself in the third person. I think perhaps a psychiatrist might see something in that trait.
Mayweather also has a unique nickname. He doesn't enter the ring as "Fearsome" Floyd Mayweather or Floyd "Flashing Fists" Mayweather. No, he calls himself Floyd "Money" Mayweather. Like "Money" is his middle name. Hey, why didn't King Midas or Scrooge McDuck think of that?
Mayweather doesn't just think of himself as a great big wad of money. He actually treats money as if it runs in his veins in a never-ending supply. For instance, he often drives through ghetto neighborhoods and throws currency to the people. If you're thinking--"Well, that's nice. He supports the poor!"--think again. It's more like, "Here's some money. I'm so freakin' rich I can toss dollar bills out the window of my luxury car to you poor slobs."
Here's a better example: He was supposed to enter the ring Saturday night at the agreed upon weight of 145 pounds. Marquez was a lightweight, coming up in weight to fight a bigger man. Mayweather came in two pounds over the agreed upon limit, cheerfully paying a fine of $300,000 a pound to Marquez. Did you get that: He paid $600,000 to his opponent just so he wouldn't have to abide by the rules!
As spend-happy as Mayweather is, he almost had his purse seized by the IRS after the fight. He owed them big bucks in unpaid back taxes, but somehow managed to cover the debt before fight time. (Maybe he went back to a couple of those ghetto neighborhoods and threatened to beat people up if they didn't give him back the money he threw out his car window.) He also owed some guy half a million or so for a customized car he ordered, perhaps with special money-tossing equipment built in.
Now I know you're thinking that Muhammad Ali was arrogant, too, and liked to make up poety that humiliated his opponents. That's true. Joe Frazier is still grumbling about being called "a gorilla" by Ali. But Ali was always funny and entertaining with his bragging. For instance, he told Sonny Liston, "Your ass is grass and I'm the lawnmower." Now that's a classic. Who doesn't appreciate that, not counting Liston?
But Mayweather is a bore. He never says anything remotely clever. He's just pure egomania unleashed.
I would love to see Manny Pacquiao whittle Mayweather down to size like so much kindling for the fireplace. Manny is a fun-loving guy who's tough as anybody who ever fought a boxing match and he grinds up guys who hit and run routinely. But Mayweather is bigger, faster and can hit like a thunderbolt. Some are thinking the guy with a real chance to chop him down is veteran "Sugar" Shane Mosley. But Mosley has had his ups and downs lately and may be ready for the recycle bin. Anyway, Mosley was there in the ring after Saturday night's fight, challenging Mayweather in what sounded very much like a promotional stunt.
I scored Saturday's fight 118-109 for Mayweather, the same as one of the judges. The HBO cheerleaders didn't give Marquez a single round. But, regardless of the points, Mayweather clearly dominated and even had Marquez on the floor once.
I'm a believer in the maxim that arrogant prizefighters almost always end unhappily. I suspect somebody will come along in the next couple of years who will simply mop the deck with Mayweather. Maybe it will be some fan like me who has spent a small fortune on pay-per-view fights, waiting for that magic moment when Floyd runs into a steamroller of an opponent and gets flattened good. If I were Floyd, I'd iincrease the number of bodyguards I employ, especially anytime I drive through the barrios.
©2009 by Ron Miller. This column first posted Sept. 21, 2009.
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