By Jake Donovan
Three days after scoring a unanimous decision over Manny Pacquiao in a virtuoso performance on May 2 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Floyd Mayweather Jr. was displeased with the excuses coming from the Filipino’s camp. Both fighters were amicable after the fight, but Mayweather didn’t care for Pacquiao insisting a shoulder injury was the primary reason for his loss.
The disdain for the excuses coming from that side of the promotion only grew by the time he sat down with Showtime’s Jim Grey for an exclusive post-fight interview. The segment aired for the first time in its entirety Saturday evening on Showtime, which immediately followed the rebroadcast of last week’s headliner.
Pacquiao reportedly underwent surgery for the shoulder tear that will now have him out of the ring for the rest of the year. Despite that, Mayweather remains unconvinced that the injury had as much to do with the loss as whom Pacquiao faced that evening.
“Absolutely not,” Mayweather said when asked if he gained any sense of Pacquiao fighting through an injury last weekend. “He was fast. His left hand was fast, his right hand was fast and he was throwing them both, fast and strong.
“When it was all said and done, he was a beat fighter. From round one, he knew it. Hell, go look when he came out to Las Vegas, he was throwing combinations just fine.”
In the end, Mayweather (48-0, 26KOs) believes the litany of excuses is little more than sour grapes from Pacquiao and his team, struggling to have to accept second place in terms of the best at welterweight, in the pound-for-pound race and of this generation.
“Manny Pacquiao, you are not on my level. Manny Pacquiao, you will never be on my level,” Mayweather insisted. “It's OK to be #2, It's OK to be right behind me.”
Mayweather once again confirmed that the final bout of his incredible 19-year career will end following his next ring appearance, which he stated will come in September. The bout will mark the last of a record-breaking six fight deal he signed with Showtime in 2013.
Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
