Mayweather more sizzle than substance
It is the unexplainable see-saw of a fight and a promotion that is barely explainable.
Floyd Mayweather, with so much of his life mired in chaos — the money man who flaunts and taunts his wealth, with a cartoon of a family, the singular boxer who has avoided both defeat and challenge, with a well-documented history of domestic violence — has been stunningly sellable in a sport that seems to be forever wobbling on the ropes.
Of all that is hard to figure about this 12-round facade of a foregone conclusion that is the Mayweather-Conor McGregor boxing match on Saturday night, Mayweather’s ability to sell himself — or even more challenging, for his promoters to sell him — and the enduring fascination with Mayweather sits atop the list as rather remarkable and contradictory.
Muhammad Ali had a Joe Frazier. Sugar Ray Leonard had a Roberto Duran. Sometimes you need that one great fight, or three great fights in the case of Ali-Frazier, to set yourself apart. Or maybe you’re Mike Tyson, and you’re personally and professionally explosive and nobody knows what you might do at any minute — there is a certain circus-like sell to that.
But Mayweather is not charming the way Ali was charming. And he didn’t smile the way Leonard smiled. And he doesn’t make you worry about blinking and missing a second of the action the way Tyson did, even long after he had none of that ability left.
Mayweather is the ultimate pragmatist. He doesn’t leave you wanting more. He makes you wonder why you bought in to start with. He is a technician, magnificent in his ability to not be hit. He is boxing’s neutral zone trap. He plays defence first and last and, in his case, defence wins championships — 12 of them in all, in five different weight classes.
And in between, he sends out a Facebook post indicating the best strippers in the world will be coming to his club, and he has spared no expense with his imports. That’s important because it’s Money Mayweather, always on an edge or a place you’d rather avoid, always about his brand of uneducated finance.
Imagine the reaction should Clayton Kershaw push the imported dancers at his fictional strip club on the days leading up to his start in Game 1 of the World Series. Imagine the talk shows, the reaction, the disgust.
This passes as just another day in another week in another year of Mayweather’s sporting life — with one difference.
This may be the sales job to end all sales jobs.
“This will be the most widely distributed pay-per-view bout in history,” said Leonard Ellerbee, CEO of Mayweather Promotions. “That’s not hyperbole. That’s fact. We’re talking some 200 countries. By the weekend, it could be 225 countries.”
“He (Mayweather) gambles on halftime,” said McGregor, trying to make sense of his opponent. “He gambles on everything. He had to make this fight. Maybe (to pay his debts) he had to take this fight.”
Mayweather’s career earnings are likely to hit $1 billion by the time the buys are accounted for following the weekend. In a sport known for leaving its participants damaged — and not just financially — Mayweather’s net worth is estimated to be $400 million. Yet he is cash-poor enough to owe the IRS in the U.S. some $29 million.
All this and not a single fight to really remember. No classic. No highlight reel.
McGregor, the UFC superstar, has never boxed before. This is his professional debut. This was only sanctioned by the Nevada State Commission because of the amount of money it would bring in. Nowhere else would this be allowed.
“It’s like taking a novice hockey player and putting him in the NHL,” said Ryan Grant, who teaches both boxing and mixed martial arts at his Toronto gym. “It would make a great movie. But this is real life. This isn’t the movies.”
This is what Mayweather does. He waits too long to fight Oscar De La Hoya and when he does he wins easily and without excitement. He waits too long to fight Manny Pacquiao and when he does he wins without being touched, again in completely unmemorable fashion.
Mayweather is the king of opportunity.
“This is keeping to Mayweather’s script,” Grant said. “I can’t stand the guy. He doesn’t take fights when they’re there. He’s a big manipulator of the sport. He doesn’t take on challenges. I think it’s been bad for the sport, but then, how you can say this when this fight is doing this kind of business?”
That’s the back and forth with Mayweather, undefeated and wealthier than anyone who came before him. This may not be the Thrilla in Manilla, but that fight didn’t have its own title belt created for it. The Money Belt for the Money Fight was on display in Sin City on Thursday afternoon. It’s a belt made for Mayweather, green in colour and featuring 3,360 diamonds, 600 sapphires, 300 emeralds, 24-karat gold and alligator leather.
A retirement sendoff of sorts for the Money Man.
“After 21 years I’ve been hit with everything, and I’m still right here,” Mayweather said at the final pre-fight news conference. “It’s called smarts. It’s called having an IQ. It’s called having patience (in the ring). From Day 1, everything my dad taught me, I know. Every combination, every angle, I know. Everything in boxing, I’ve done. I was born to be a fighter. I will die a fighter.”
He doesn’t take fights when they’re there. He’s a big manipulator of the sport. He doesn’t take on challenges.