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Camp Update: Floyd hungry to make a statement!
By Ace Freeman
Ace Freeman spent the afternoon in Floyd Mayweather's training camp last week to get the inside scoop on Floyd's preparations for his December 8, 2007 fight against Ricky Hatton directly from those closest to the situation.
November 5, 2007
Vegas is a fast town in many ways. From the flow of the booze to the women and the speed at which one’s hard earned money seems to disappear, it’s often all a blur. In the midst of this haven of flashing lights and big money sits a plain strip mall where each storefront is stark and nameless. It’s behind one of these sets of closed doors that boxing’s greatest fighter spends his days hard at work.
It’s hard to believe that one of boxing’s richest and most prolific fighters could suffer from occasional bouts of complacency in a place like Las Vegas, but as strange as that sounds Mayweather admitted recently he sometimes grows tired of boxing. It is entirely possible that in his reality his superiority over the competition may occasionally fail to keep his interest but this same sentiment has seen countless former kings of boxing abruptly spilled from their thrones.
Ricky Hatton and I have previously discussed how Jake Lamotta was able to force the legendary Sugar Ray Robinson out of his element. How Joe Frazier made Muhammad Ali pay for taking him lightly and how Roberto Duran roughed Sugar Ray Leonard out of his comfort zone. It’s in that same tradition that Ricky Hatton is currently and humbly training like a man possessed while you are sitting here reading this. And he has just the right attitude entering this fight.
“I feel fortunate that Floyd has given me the opportunity to match my skills against his.” Hatton said. “All I can say is that I will be on him like a cheap suit for a full twelve rounds and I won’t stop punching until my heart explodes.” It’s that type of modesty that makes the young Brit difficult to dislike, or to count out.
With all of that said I really wanted to drop in on the Mayweather camp and find out for myself if Floyd might be sleeping on Ricky Hatton just a bit. I wanted to know what his temperament was like in training and I wanted to hear from those closest to him just where his mind was since being eliminated from Dancing With the Stars as he looked ahead to fight Hatton.
I arrived at the Mayweather gym unannounced on the last day of a brief stop in Las Vegas. It was 2:00 in the afternoon and the parking lot was empty. I entered the gym to see the familiar face of famed cut-man Rafael Garcia keeping busy in the front area; a key figure of Team Mayweather, Garcia has been a strong presence in Mayweather’s life for quite some time. I asked him when Floyd and his crew would be around and he assured me they would be in soon. He invited me to wait and was quite cordial in entertaining my questions.
“He looks sharp,” Garcia said, in response to my inquiry about where Floyd was at in this early stage of training. “He’s working hard now that the show is over.”
Garcia is a sincere and honest figure and he is a mentor to many of the younger fighters around the Mayweather gym. After chatting about a few of the other intriguing matchups coming up in boxing (Garcia likes Mosley over Cotto) the conversation was interrupted by an unmistakable voice entering from the gym.
“That’s because you mother *&^%’s don’t understand boxing!” Roger Mayweather exclaimed as he entered the room in the midst of an argument with a young Latino fighter. Floyd’s uncle and head trainer is a gruff and rigid character and walks with a swagger that seems halfway between a limp and a strut. He stopped and looked at me sternly; I was clearly an ******** in his family’s gym. I’d spoken to him several times before and the Canadian flag on my shirt seemed to ring a bell.
“Roger!” I said with a tone of excitement in my voice”.
“Yeah?” he said, looking at me warily, his brow raised slightly.
“I’m from Canada, I was hoping to get an interview with you.” I quipped back at him.
“Well alright then, let’s do it!” he exclaimed taking it all in stride. Any chance to drop some of his hard earned wisdom seems to sit well with Roger. He may come across as overly blunt and forthright, but above all else he has a tremendous passion for the sport and his experience and knowledge is something to marvel at. He led me into the locker room and proceeded to give me a solid lengthy interview.
I tried several times to ask him if there was a chance Floyd may be overlooking Hatton and may be susceptible to being outworked. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of dressing up the question with a comparison to Duran upsetting Leonard. The mere hint that I might possibly be comparing Hatton to Duran got me cut off and stuck listening to an earful. After some verbal sparring, I finally got the question across uninterrupted.
“Floyd is very focused for this fight.” Roger told me matter-of-factly. “He’s not going to let anyone out do him. That’s what motivates Floyd. That reputation of being the best fighter in the world is something he takes very seriously and he refuses to let anyone out do him. Floyd’s going to be Floyd and he’s going to beat (Hatton’s) ass.”
After the camera was off, I spent a good half hour talking with Roger about many different topics. He told me that Floyd doesn’t watch any video whatsoever. Studying tape was Roger’s job, and that was something he’d already done with Ricky Hatton.
After receiving a lengthy boxing history lesson from Roger, I was anxious to get a more in depth look around the gym. I took a seat in the front room again, it wasn’t long before the door opened and in walked an intimidating looking Lovemore N'dou, Floyd’s chief sparring partner. In passing, he stopped and took the time to indulge me in a few questions.
“Hatton has no chance,” N'dou quipped in a stern and serious tone. “No chance.” He went on to tell me about the tremendous pace and lengths he’d been experiencing in working with Mayweather. True to many previous reports, N'dou confirmed that he and Mayweather had been sparring six to nine-minute rounds, eight to ten rounds at a time and he was clearly enjoying the endurance marathons. N'dou left little doubt that Floyd is getting a real workout in his sparring in addition to the eight miles a day Floyd claims to be currently running.
Soon the entrance to the gym got a lot busier with many broad bodies entering in waves. Countless Philthy Rich Records shirts gave prelude to Floyd’s arrival. I peered out the window to see an expensive looking personalized Mercedes SLR McLaren pull up. It wasn’t long after that Floyd made his entrance into the gym. With a stack of banded hundred dollar bills in each hand Floyd was on the phone discussing NFL odds as he strutted between an array of entourage members.
followed them into the gym area and took a seat studying the surroundings. A massive banner hung on the main wall of Mayweather busting Oscar De La Hoya with a lead right hand. Below it, a full-size boxing ring took up the majority of the room, freshly affixed with “Mayweather Promotions” ring posts. Floyd Mayweather Jr. leaned against the mat and threw two large stacks of money under the bottom rope. He strutted around the room throwing out greetings and flashed me his trademark smile.
At the same time, Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe entered the gym and began surveying the scene. While Floyd took his time getting suited up, Leonard came over and shared a word with me. He agreed to come outside and conduct a video interview. Once again, I was trying to gauge the feeling from those closest to Floyd about his focus and drive for this fight.
“Floyd is hands down the best conditioned athlete in the world,” Ellerbe assured me. “He’s the best fighter in the world. He’s tremendously focused for this fight and come December 8, he’s going to put it on the line. The challenge in this fight for Floyd is the challenge he’s put on himself: he wants to go out and win this fight in an impressive fashion for his fans all over the world.”
After wrapping up the interview with me, Ellerbe returned to the gym area and locked the doors behind him. Although all sparring in the Mayweather gym is done behind closed doors, I felt somewhat satisfied at getting to the heart of the matter.
I came to see if there was any room for complacency in Mayweather’s training for his upcoming fight with Ricky Hatton. As it turns out, there is no space for it to exist within the confines of Floyd’s competitive nature. The very thought of another fighter attempting to step foot in the ring with him and test his highly held sense of superiority seems to be offensive to Floyd. He fights the very notion that anyone could possible better him more so than the opponents themselves. To Floyd, Dec. 8 is just another day in the life.
By Ace Freeman
Ace Freeman spent the afternoon in Floyd Mayweather's training camp last week to get the inside scoop on Floyd's preparations for his December 8, 2007 fight against Ricky Hatton directly from those closest to the situation.
November 5, 2007
Vegas is a fast town in many ways. From the flow of the booze to the women and the speed at which one’s hard earned money seems to disappear, it’s often all a blur. In the midst of this haven of flashing lights and big money sits a plain strip mall where each storefront is stark and nameless. It’s behind one of these sets of closed doors that boxing’s greatest fighter spends his days hard at work.
It’s hard to believe that one of boxing’s richest and most prolific fighters could suffer from occasional bouts of complacency in a place like Las Vegas, but as strange as that sounds Mayweather admitted recently he sometimes grows tired of boxing. It is entirely possible that in his reality his superiority over the competition may occasionally fail to keep his interest but this same sentiment has seen countless former kings of boxing abruptly spilled from their thrones.
Ricky Hatton and I have previously discussed how Jake Lamotta was able to force the legendary Sugar Ray Robinson out of his element. How Joe Frazier made Muhammad Ali pay for taking him lightly and how Roberto Duran roughed Sugar Ray Leonard out of his comfort zone. It’s in that same tradition that Ricky Hatton is currently and humbly training like a man possessed while you are sitting here reading this. And he has just the right attitude entering this fight.
“I feel fortunate that Floyd has given me the opportunity to match my skills against his.” Hatton said. “All I can say is that I will be on him like a cheap suit for a full twelve rounds and I won’t stop punching until my heart explodes.” It’s that type of modesty that makes the young Brit difficult to dislike, or to count out.
With all of that said I really wanted to drop in on the Mayweather camp and find out for myself if Floyd might be sleeping on Ricky Hatton just a bit. I wanted to know what his temperament was like in training and I wanted to hear from those closest to him just where his mind was since being eliminated from Dancing With the Stars as he looked ahead to fight Hatton.
I arrived at the Mayweather gym unannounced on the last day of a brief stop in Las Vegas. It was 2:00 in the afternoon and the parking lot was empty. I entered the gym to see the familiar face of famed cut-man Rafael Garcia keeping busy in the front area; a key figure of Team Mayweather, Garcia has been a strong presence in Mayweather’s life for quite some time. I asked him when Floyd and his crew would be around and he assured me they would be in soon. He invited me to wait and was quite cordial in entertaining my questions.
“He looks sharp,” Garcia said, in response to my inquiry about where Floyd was at in this early stage of training. “He’s working hard now that the show is over.”
Garcia is a sincere and honest figure and he is a mentor to many of the younger fighters around the Mayweather gym. After chatting about a few of the other intriguing matchups coming up in boxing (Garcia likes Mosley over Cotto) the conversation was interrupted by an unmistakable voice entering from the gym.
“That’s because you mother *&^%’s don’t understand boxing!” Roger Mayweather exclaimed as he entered the room in the midst of an argument with a young Latino fighter. Floyd’s uncle and head trainer is a gruff and rigid character and walks with a swagger that seems halfway between a limp and a strut. He stopped and looked at me sternly; I was clearly an ******** in his family’s gym. I’d spoken to him several times before and the Canadian flag on my shirt seemed to ring a bell.
“Roger!” I said with a tone of excitement in my voice”.
“Yeah?” he said, looking at me warily, his brow raised slightly.
“I’m from Canada, I was hoping to get an interview with you.” I quipped back at him.
“Well alright then, let’s do it!” he exclaimed taking it all in stride. Any chance to drop some of his hard earned wisdom seems to sit well with Roger. He may come across as overly blunt and forthright, but above all else he has a tremendous passion for the sport and his experience and knowledge is something to marvel at. He led me into the locker room and proceeded to give me a solid lengthy interview.
I tried several times to ask him if there was a chance Floyd may be overlooking Hatton and may be susceptible to being outworked. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of dressing up the question with a comparison to Duran upsetting Leonard. The mere hint that I might possibly be comparing Hatton to Duran got me cut off and stuck listening to an earful. After some verbal sparring, I finally got the question across uninterrupted.
“Floyd is very focused for this fight.” Roger told me matter-of-factly. “He’s not going to let anyone out do him. That’s what motivates Floyd. That reputation of being the best fighter in the world is something he takes very seriously and he refuses to let anyone out do him. Floyd’s going to be Floyd and he’s going to beat (Hatton’s) ass.”
After the camera was off, I spent a good half hour talking with Roger about many different topics. He told me that Floyd doesn’t watch any video whatsoever. Studying tape was Roger’s job, and that was something he’d already done with Ricky Hatton.
After receiving a lengthy boxing history lesson from Roger, I was anxious to get a more in depth look around the gym. I took a seat in the front room again, it wasn’t long before the door opened and in walked an intimidating looking Lovemore N'dou, Floyd’s chief sparring partner. In passing, he stopped and took the time to indulge me in a few questions.
“Hatton has no chance,” N'dou quipped in a stern and serious tone. “No chance.” He went on to tell me about the tremendous pace and lengths he’d been experiencing in working with Mayweather. True to many previous reports, N'dou confirmed that he and Mayweather had been sparring six to nine-minute rounds, eight to ten rounds at a time and he was clearly enjoying the endurance marathons. N'dou left little doubt that Floyd is getting a real workout in his sparring in addition to the eight miles a day Floyd claims to be currently running.
Soon the entrance to the gym got a lot busier with many broad bodies entering in waves. Countless Philthy Rich Records shirts gave prelude to Floyd’s arrival. I peered out the window to see an expensive looking personalized Mercedes SLR McLaren pull up. It wasn’t long after that Floyd made his entrance into the gym. With a stack of banded hundred dollar bills in each hand Floyd was on the phone discussing NFL odds as he strutted between an array of entourage members.
followed them into the gym area and took a seat studying the surroundings. A massive banner hung on the main wall of Mayweather busting Oscar De La Hoya with a lead right hand. Below it, a full-size boxing ring took up the majority of the room, freshly affixed with “Mayweather Promotions” ring posts. Floyd Mayweather Jr. leaned against the mat and threw two large stacks of money under the bottom rope. He strutted around the room throwing out greetings and flashed me his trademark smile.
At the same time, Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe entered the gym and began surveying the scene. While Floyd took his time getting suited up, Leonard came over and shared a word with me. He agreed to come outside and conduct a video interview. Once again, I was trying to gauge the feeling from those closest to Floyd about his focus and drive for this fight.
“Floyd is hands down the best conditioned athlete in the world,” Ellerbe assured me. “He’s the best fighter in the world. He’s tremendously focused for this fight and come December 8, he’s going to put it on the line. The challenge in this fight for Floyd is the challenge he’s put on himself: he wants to go out and win this fight in an impressive fashion for his fans all over the world.”
After wrapping up the interview with me, Ellerbe returned to the gym area and locked the doors behind him. Although all sparring in the Mayweather gym is done behind closed doors, I felt somewhat satisfied at getting to the heart of the matter.
I came to see if there was any room for complacency in Mayweather’s training for his upcoming fight with Ricky Hatton. As it turns out, there is no space for it to exist within the confines of Floyd’s competitive nature. The very thought of another fighter attempting to step foot in the ring with him and test his highly held sense of superiority seems to be offensive to Floyd. He fights the very notion that anyone could possible better him more so than the opponents themselves. To Floyd, Dec. 8 is just another day in the life.