Floyd Mayweather has finally broken his silence in an exclusive, two-part interview with Ben Thompson of FightHype.com. Part one was released earlier today, and Floyd gives his thoughts on Manny Pacquiao, their much speculated about second negotiation attempt, and Manny’s competition level. Some excerpts can be viewed below. A link to the entire interview is provided after the quotes. Is Mayweather avoiding Pacquiao, just waiting for the right time to strike, or is the fight still mired in the Olympic style drug testing issue? Let me know your thoughts.
On Manny Pacquiao’s Competition
All these guys he’s beaten, he’s beaten them at catchweights to where the guys are drained once they get inside that squared circle; they’re already drained….Cotto gets beat by Margarito then he wants to fight Cotto. I wanted to fight Shane when he was undefeated. I didn’t just call De La Hoya out, it just took me a long time to get the fight. I was calling De La Hoya out in the 90’s, but Bob Arum would never give me the fight.
On His Competition
Shane knocked out Antonio Margarito at the age of 37, right? They say that’s the best he ever looked. He lost to me at 38. My performance was so dominating, they tried to say Shane Mosley was over the hill.
On Why Mayweather-Pacquiao Did Not Get Made
The Mayweather-Pacquiao fight didn’t get made because Manny Pacquiao said he wanted two weeks of non-testing. The last two weeks leading up until the fight, he didn’t want to take the tests, so that’s why the fight didn’t happen. Everything they asked of me, I agreed and what I asked of them, they didn’t agree. When Manny gave blood before the first Morales fight, he lost. He didn’t give blood for the next two fights and he knocked Morales out with ease.
READ PART ONE OF FIGHTHYPE.COM’S EXCLUSIVE MAYWEATHER INTERVIEW
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UPDATE
Sounds like we’re going to have to call in the UN to sort out the negotiations for this fight. This whole fiasco has become as convoluted as the Middle East peace process.
Contrary to popular belief, at this stage I don’t see much difference between the two as far as their mentalities about the sport. Both are the only true superstars in boxing, and make their decisions based on what will generate the most money over which fight is the toughest challenge. Floyd, to the chagrin of media and fans, admitted that years ago. Pacquiao’s handlers ( Michael Koncz, Bob Arum) came clean with that stance before the Margarito fight, and have proven it’s still their philosophy by making the Mosley bout. It’s ironic that the one fight that offers the biggest challenge and financial reward (Mayweather-Pacquiao), has been the most difficult for both sides to agree to.
So who’s telling the truth? Although there’s no certainty, I’m leaning towards Floyd. I last interviewed Manny Pacquiao back in November before he faced Antonio Margarito. He told me that he agreed to drug testing through fight night, and was even willing to test between rounds if necessary to make the fight. I believe him. However, Michael Koncz, his trusted advisor, stated on HBO’s 24/7 that contractually they agreed to a seven-day cutoff. See the first 10 seconds of the below video.
It’s very possible Pacquiao did not know the particulars of the contract or Koncz’s offer. Fighters fight, and don’t like to have to sit down and help solve complex negotiations. Nearly every fighter I’ve spoken to will deflect such inquiries to their management. Another clear example that hints at Manny’s possible unawareness is that he did not even know that Bob Arum had moved his next fight from HBO to Showtime. It took a reporter bringing it up. Pacquiao had to be briefed by his camp before giving a standard response about it being a great move for the sport.
At this point, all we can hope is that the third time will be the charm with the Mayweather-Pacquiao negotiations.
Beats, Boxing and Mayhem 