By Mark Vester
Despite the recent comments of Floyd Mayweather Jr., his father/former trainer, Floyd Mayweather Sr., still feels the big paydays will lure his son back to the sport of boxing. Last Friday, Mayweather Jr. spoke out for the first time since announcing his retirement a few weeks back, and told the Grand Rapids Press that he would not return unless there was a $100 million dollars waiting for him.
"I'm through," Mayweather said. "Once I tell people I'm through, I'm through. People say, 'Oh, he retired and came back, after the De La Hoya fight.' I didn't retire and come back. I just fought one more fight, against Ricky Hatton. And as soon as I beat him, it was, 'What about this guy?' and 'What about that guy?' It's never good enough. Some boxing people weren't going to be happy until I take a loss, and that's not ever going to happen. I achieved all I wanted to achieve.
"And if I did want to come back, I was going to make, what, $50 million (for the De La Hoya rematch)? You know what, don't call my phone unless you've got $100 million. I was truly, truly blessed to have good people around me and I was smart during my career. "I made great investments. By the end of this year, I should be a billionaire."
Floyd Sr. was going to train Oscar De La Hoya for a rematch with his son, previously scheduled for September, but the fight was obviously scrapped after Mayweather Jr's retirement announcement. He thinks his son made the right move by walking away, but at some point he sees a return.
"He made the right decision," Floyd Sr. told the Las Vegas Review Journal. "But he'll be back. When? I can't tell you that. But what will bring him back is the money. He likes those big paydays."
De La Hoya's bout has been changed to December 6 and Floyd Sr. says their camp for the fight will begin shortly. The opponent has not been set. Miguel Cotto, should he beat Antonio Margarito on July 26, is the favorite to get the fight. Floyd Sr. reunited with De La Hoya for the May 5 bout against Steve Forbes. He liked what he saw in Oscar's offense, but he felt the former six-division champ was lacking the proper defense and took too make punches during the twelve-round win.
"Oscar was so focused on his offense that his defense wasn't as sharp as it should be," Floyd Sr said. "But he's learning to relax in the ring and not waste energy."
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