By Edward Chaykovsky
Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach revealed that retired pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr. (49-0, 26KOs) had visited his gym, the Wild Boxing Club in Hollywood, on more than one occasion as of late.
Mayweather retired last September after notching his 49th win with a decision over Andre Berto. Recently he's been hinting at the idea of coming back in the fall, but the only opponent that he's been mentioning is UFC world champion Conor McGregor.
If he does return, the biggest money fight is a rematch with Manny Pacquiao - who Roach trains. But Pacquiao retired last month after beating Tim Bradley in a trilogy bout. Since his retirement, the Filpino star has secured a senatorial seat in the Philippines.
Because of his now busy political career, Roach is unsure if Pacquiao would have enough time to properly train for a fight. Roach would like to have Pacquiao face Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez at a catch-weight - but his real desire is a Mayweather rematch. Mayweather decisioned Pacquiao over twelve last May, in a fight that shattered all financial records with 4.6 million pay-per-view buys.
“They’ll call me and let me know what’s going to happen,” Roach said to The Los Angeles Times. “Manny and [his manager Michael] Koncz both told me after the last fight that they do feel strongly about trying to get Mayweather one more time. I think that’s the only fight he’d come back for.
“He could come back for Canelo, too, but he’s not as big a draw as Mayweather-Pacquiao II. One more fight, I would like to see it, but does he have time to do it as a senator? I’m sure there’s a lot more work to do. But I know he has at least one more [fight] in him. He showed flashes of the old Manny last fight.”
While Roach received two visits from Mayweather, there were no conversations regarding a Pacquiao rematch.
“We talked a little bit — not about the fight. Not one word about fighting. He has a home here now [in Hollywood], and this might be the only gym he knows around here,” Roach said. “But it’s interesting. I keep waiting for him to bring [a Pacquiao rematch] up, but he hasn’t, so I don’t.”
