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Chris Robinson
Las Vegas Boxing Examiner
07 Sep 2010
What can you say about Floyd Mayweather Jr. at this point in time? While always seeming to change personas every time a camera is in front of his face, there was never really any surprise upon hearing the undefeated fighter boast of his abilities, flaunt some money or talk a little bit of trash. But his recent derogatory comments towards Manny Pacquiao, and Filipinos in general, couldn’t help but leave those watching scratching their head.
Floyd’s remarks came during a personal Ustream broadcast and he was quick to apologize shortly thereafter, yet the damage was already done. It was a Mayweather-Pacquiao fight that has been capturing the public’s imagination for nearly a year now but Floyd seems to have soured the appetite of those waiting. For his part Pacquiao has said that he may be better off without a Mayweather bout and by this point in time the public’s interest is definitely waning.
Wanting to get a better feel for what some people in the sport are saying about the contest I reached out to some boxing minds to get their take on Mayweather’s latest tirade. In their personal assessments the panel is definitely brutal with their words and pulled no punches with their delivery.
This is what everyone had to say…
Scoop Malinowski, contributor and owner of The Biofile (www.Biofile.com)
“Floyd's angry that his fear and cowardice about facing Pacquiao has now been exposed. He was accustomed to having his way ducking and dodging and handpicking name fighters at the right time, but this time, the public now sees and realizes the ugly truth about Mayweather, despite all the shameful cover up attempts. ESPN called him a coward, as did many other mainstream media outlets.
My theory is Mayweather is jealous and envious of Pacquiao. He feels inferior to him in just about every way, in the ring as a fighter and outside the ring as a sportsman. I believe he wishes he could be everything Pacquiao is - a champion, a hero, an inspiration, beloved by millions all over the world - but he completely failed to come close to achieving that, despite being manufactured and protected by the powers that be.
This latest uneducated tirade against Pacquiao, the week of the Margarito contract signing and press conferences, reflects the resentment and frustration that has been building up in Mayweather, who has been forced to stay quiet and hide from answering questions about boxing Pacquiao. Pacquiao is his worst nightmare. All he can do now is talk his garbage talk, but talk is just talk. When it comes to taking actions about boxing Pacquiao, Floyd has shown he would rather talk. I am more than sure Pacquiao will abuse, beat up and knock out Mayweather - if HBO and Golden Boy take away all of Floyd's other options and force him to fight Pacquiao in 2011. HBO must tell Floyd they will not invest any money in promoting Floyd until he signs to fight Pacquiao. I believe this is what is happening, though admission of this will not happen, for obvious reasons.
Pacquiao vs. Mayweather is going to be a one-sided beatdown, most similar to the recent good vs. evil battle - the 2002 clash between Lewis and Tyson.”
Matt Yano, 15 Rounds correspondent and co-owner of www.GardenStateFightScene.com
"Floyd's rant was a disgusting personal attack on one of the sport's classiest fighters and it came out of the blue. The racist comments were unnecessary and although he was trying to be funny, Mayweather actually made himself look like a fool.
He has been very successful in self promotion, but the racist rant damaged his image. I think Mayweather is somewhat jealous of all the attention and respect Pacquiao gets, thus he was trying to take some of it away; hence the reason he did it during the Pacquiao-Margarito press tour week.
The apology was weak and if I was Kelly Swanson (his publicist) I'd be fuming. Hopefully we can see him in the ring and off Ustream.”
Jake Donovan, managing editor at www.BoxingScene.com
“I found his apology to be hollow, as I never got the sense that he was sorry for what he said more so than he seemed surprised that anyone took offense to it. That only speaks volumes of how ignorant he is, as does his inability to differentiate between Asian cultures and nationalities. I can't see how anyone other than his hired yes-men found anything he said to be funny. Even when stripping away the racist and ****phobic remarks, the nonsense he spewed was barely coherent and he lacks the personality to be witty on the spot like that.
The rant itself was his desperate attempt to remain in the headlines. He claimed earlier this summer that he's on vacation, yet expected everyone to beg him back to the sport. Honestly, I think the sport is better off without him, but as long as he generates money, the corporate whores will continue to look the other way and further lower the bar for our already morally bankrupt sport.
That said, everyone who longs for a reality show starring the Mayweather family needs to look in the mirror every time Floyd, his father or Uncle Roger goes on an attention-whoring tirade. The media feeds into it, as does our train wreck society that all too often gravitates towards ***********ality. The more we tune in - even if to shake our heads and criticize - the more we feed their inflated egos. If Floyd has no interest in fighting or showing the slightest modicum of respect that has made him hundreds of millions, then it's high time that the industry tells him to f*** off and find other ways to make money.”
Kenneth Ragpala, owner of The Filipino Boxing Journal
“Mayweather is losing it. Or has lost it. Now he is merely trying to make himself relevant by breaking his silence and launched a verbal barrage against Pacquiao after he officially signed to fight Margarito. Even the hardcore Mayweather fans might find it hard to defend their idol this time.”
‘Iceman' John Scully, former world title challenger and current day trainer
“I have seen Floyd get into these type of really arrogant and ignorant sounding tirades before on Youtube and each time I came away pretty much disgusted with the guy to be honest with you. But here's the thing: I have met the man several times over the years and I'm not saying we're friends or anything, I doubt he even knows who I am, but I have spoken with him, interacted with him, been in the gym with him, and I never saw that ignorant side to him. If anything it was pretty much the total opposite. From what I have seen, from what I have read and from what I have heard from people who have been around him more than I have, I get the impression that some of his act is just that, an act. I also think that when a camera comes around or when he is around one of his typical groupies/slash/hangers on, I feel like he feels the need to put on a show for them. I think he is influenced by their presence more than he would ever admit and it's a thing where their presence only serves to put him in a bad light. It's okay for the hangers on around him to be in that light because once the light is off they will be gone anyway, back where they came from. And he'll have to bear the brunt of al the backlash he's brought on to himself. He'll try to explain that it was all for show, that he felt pressure to act out as he does, but nobody will believe him or care if its true or not. Someone with some real influence over him, and not these people who bow to him, needs to set him straight.”
Kenneth Bouhairie, Boxing News (UK) correspondent
“Pretty pathetic trash talk from Mayweather - completely unacceptable in this day and age. Not unlike some of the comments Muhammad Ali made toward Joe Frazier. Good to see Floyd apologize but his words came out of left field. Pacquiao is too dignified to respond in similar fashion. That said, there's no question that Mayweather has become a part-time boxer and one hell of a promoter. I turned on ESPN and discovered his comments were the headliner. Fresh off a vacation, he's found a new way to keep his name in the news. This writer wishes he'd let his fists do the talking.”
...Granville Ampong, Filipino Celebrity Headlines Examiner
“I thought Mayweather, Jr.'s racist rant is not a surprise nor his follow-up apology. It has become part of the "norms", so to speak, here in this most diverse part of the earth. It's just Floyd Mayweather, Jr.'s tirades were made public. But, he seems to be "striving hard after the wind", that which he should not. Despite criticisms about him by most of the "emotionally-driven" fans and biased writers, I think he is still on the top of the game. He is still the bigger draw despite Manny Pacquiao's increasing popularity. Conversely, his recent theatrics only glorify Pacquiao. As to Mayweather Jr.'s mental state, I think his manifest behavior is quite entertaining. I can liken him to the manner of Muhammad Ali's way of mounting his psychological warfare, even over Smokin' Joe Frazier. I think he wants his imposing "spirit" to alter, if not to control, Pacquiao's subconsciousness. In some way, he also has that enviousness toward Pacquiao. Mayweather, Jr. should be contented of his level of achievements. I am reminded of Ecclesiastes 6:7: "All the labor of man is for his mouth, and yet the soul is not satisfied.””
Shane Langford, assistant trainer at the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles
“He apparently is an azzhole...thats all I can make of that.”
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