By Chris Robinson
Earlier this week, news broke that eight-division champion Manny Pacquiao has settled his defamation lawsuit against Richard Schaefer and Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy Promotions on confidential terms. De La Hoya and Schaefer had said remarks in the past that hinted at Pacquiao's use of performance-enhancing drugs, an act that that enraged the Filipino star, and the tension underlined the Top Rank-Golden Boy feud at the time.
In a sport full of foul dialogue and unfounded accusations, it was refreshing to see the two men step forward and the dismissal of the lawsuit paves way towards the game's two biggest promotional companies possibly working with one another in the near future. What some people connected to the sport have also been asking for is the same kind of apology from members of the Mayweather family, specifically Floyd Sr., Roger, and Floyd Jr., who have went to the extreme in dissing Pacquiao over the past year and a half or so in suggesting that he has been using illegal substances to enhance his performances.
Wanting to get his take on everything and curious as to whether any offerings of remorse would be in store, I reached out to Floyd Mayweather Sr. earlier tonight. Our conversation took off very fast once we began discussing the settling of Pacquiao's lawsuit and Floyd Sr. reeled off some choice sound bytes without much regard to the situation. Floyd and I talked about the initial lawsuit, his feelings towards Oscar De La Hoya's recent stint in rehab, why he feels people should always have the right to voice their opinion, and much more.
In his own words, and as only he can say, this is what Floyd Sr. had to say...
How the law goes...
"They got their thing squashed. When they got the deal they squashed it for all of us. When you are in the court of law, you can't just apologize for nothing is something is over. I don't know what kind of moves they made. I'll tell you like this, right here, Oscar had a piece of Pacquiao and so did Bob Arum. But I don't see how they could convict anybody anyways. If they free them, they free em' all. That's how the law goes."
Feeling for Oscar...
"Well, I have heard two different opinions. I have heard people have said that he is on drugs and if he is on drugs I feel for him. Regardless of whatever the situation is."
Getting off...
"Again, for Schaefer and Oscar getting off, I think it's good that they got off and I think anybody should get off at anytime when they just voice their opinion and when they are truthfully speaking about an opinion they believe. I think they should be released. It's just a person's belief. You can believe whatever you want to believe."
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All I want to know...
"Let me tell you this right here. Have you ever seen a man that small doing what he's doing in all these weight classes? That's all I want to know. They are apologizing because Oscar is Pacquiao's manager along with Bob."
A little man like that...
"That's what they wanted to do and if they wanted to play it like that, it's ok. It's ok for people to get away because that's what they believed. Oscar has his own opinion of what happened in that fight and how he took the punches he took. Shane made remarks about how he hit him and how he aint never been hit by nobody like that in all the fights he had. That man disconnected Margarito's eye. You telling me the littlest man in boxing did that? He disconnected his eye and he kept on fighting. Against a little man like that?"
Apologetic nature...
"If Pacquiao wants people to apologize to make other people believe things, I don't know. I'm telling you man, whatever happens, whatever I said is what I believe."
Haven't seen anything...
"I haven't seen nothing because you think someone is going to let me see something when they are putting something in their ass or putting something in their arm, or putting something in their mouth? You think somebody will let you see that? Hell no. So, it is what it is man."