By Chris Robinson
Trainer Jeff Mayweather took some time to discuss a variety of topics in the sport, including this past weekend's Miguel Cotto-Ricardo Mayorga bout at the MGM Grand, a possible rematch between Miguel and Antonio Margarito, the rising star of Sergio Martinez, and his stable of fighters, including the likes of Chase Corbin, Brandon Gonzales and Celestino Caballero.
This is what was on Jeff's mind...
Rumors of Floyd Jr. leaving for South Florida...
"I haven't heard anything. I know that he's been spending a lot of time down there. From what I hear he might even has a place down there but I'm not sure. I don't think that he will leave Las Vegas."
Miguel Cotto's new look...
"We definitely didn't see the old Cotto. He threw good combinations and I know that [Mayorga's] defense was going to fall apart and that's what happened. Overall he looked good. Even when Mayorga was getting in big shots he still stayed focused and he was on his mission. He stayed focused an he worked hard for the victory."
Margarito getting another shot...
"I think that it was inevitable anyways. The only sad part is that Margarito is getting this money an he is a guy who got caught cheating red-handed. Like I said, I think back to the incident with Panama Lewis and Luis Resto. That was nineteen years ago. Don't you think the standard should be higher rather than worse? If a guy got a lifetime that many years ago I would think that the punishment should be even worse, especially when he got caught red-handed."
Sergio Martinez's rising star power...
"Right now he's a very, very hot commodity. Eventually he's going to be one of those money guys in boxing. He's becoming a star in boxing. There are going to be a lot of guys who are going to have to fight him just to get a payday."
His fighter Chase 'Checkmate' Corbin...
"It's going good. He has been good work with Celestino [Caballero] and Jessie Vargas. He's been getting good work and he will be ready by fight time. When it comes to fighting he has a very, very good right hand and a goob jab. He has a lot of confidence in himself. He's a little bit of an entertainer at times and he has a bright future ahead of him."
Celestino Caballero getting his hunger back...
"Basically now it's the same Celestino now that came to me the first time. Basically the first time he had something to prove and that's the Celestino that I'm seeing now. He's got his legs back and that's what makes him a special fighter. He's very gifted an extremely hard to hit but without his legs he's an average fighter. I'm seeing the old Celestino and it's like he's having fun again. It's not going to be like before. He's hungry an he has the right mindset."
Parting ways with Samuel Peter...
"I'm not working with him anymore. Basically we didn't even gel anyways. I come to the gym everyday and he comes whenever he wants to. I think that was part of it. It's just hard to find a fighter who never comes to work. It's not that big of a deal to me."
Brandon Gonzales' frustrations...
"I guess right now Brandon is real frustrated. Right now things aren't working the way he was foreseeing. Pretty much he's just frustrated with his promoters because he feels that he is ready to step up an he actually had an ESPN but it ended up being dropped. He wants to showcase to the world how good of an athlete he is an he wants to be on the bigger stage. Either ShoBox or ESPN, those are the things he's hoping for but the promoter he's with, I don't think they can make it happen."
The most important thing...
"I never picked any of these guys, they picked me. That's the most important part. There are some trainers who try to steal other people's fighters but I would never do that. I would walk away from a fighter before I tried to do that. I just feel that if you are doing something well then you will eventually become part of the upper echelon. An that's just boxing."
