Mayweather pressuring himself

WBC/WBA “unified” welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather is putting a lot of undue pressure on himself by setting a goal of retiring from professional boxing with an unblemished record. Right now, he’s at 47-0 with two more fights left in his $250 million Showtime contract. Two more wins will duplicate the late Rocky Marciano’s record when the world heavyweight champion retired in 1955.

But even if Mayweather eclipses Marciano’s mark, there’s still another record to chase. Former IBF lightflyweight and WBC/WBA/WBO minimumweight champion Ricardo Lopez retired in 2001 with a 51-0-1 record, including 38 KOs, at the age of 35. That milestone is also within Mayweather’s reach.

Calling himself “The Best Ever” or TBE isn’t helping to ease the pressure. Or maybe, Mayweather just relishes the challenge. No question, Mayweather is full of himself. He’s an egotist and megalomaniac. The way he lives his life is shameful, he expects to be treated like a king lording it over subjects who are blinded by his wealth. You wonder if Mayweather believes in God because he worships mammon.

If Mayweather loses to Manny Pacquiao in their ultimate showdown in Las Vegas on May 2, it will be a huge comedown for the man who likes to be called Money. It will be such a humbling experience that Mayweather may never be the same again. That’s because of the pressure he puts on himself.

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But former world lightheavyweight and heavyweight champion Michael Spinks said recently he doesn’t think a loss will diminish Mayweather’s reputation as a future Hall of Famer. Spinks lost only once in his career, a devastating first round knockout defeat to Mike Tyson in a WBA/WBC/IBF heavyweight unification championship fight in 1988. That ended Spinks’ career and settled his record at 31-1, with 21 KOs. So in trying to tone down a possible loss by Mayweather, Spinks could’ve been reassuring himself.

“If Floyd gets one defeat, I don’t think it would change his legacy at all,” said Spinks quoted by Tris Dixon in Boxing News. “I think it would carry on and his light will shine. I don’t think my legacy was altered by my one loss, not at all. I’d had a nice strong career before the loss and at the time, the guy I fought (Tyson), he was very tough to beat by anybody. I lost to a real strong competitor. Right now, I think Mayweather wants to retire undefeated.”

Tommy (Hitman) Hearns agreed with Spinks. “I don’t think defeat will hurt Mayweather at all because he’s done so well, a loss wouldn’t make a difference. He’s pretty much picking and choosing whom he fights and he’s doing a good job. He’s undefeated so it’s going well. I enjoy Floyd as a boxer, he’s doing a great job. Floyd is the best. He’s done what he has to do. I mean, he’s beaten everybody. The fight with Pacquiao, it should have happened long ago. It’s not gonna mean anything if he beats him now, just a few more million. He’s on top because he’s stayed undefeated while Pacquiao got knocked out (by Juan Manuel Marquez).”

Hearns clearly underrated the value of a Pacquiao-Mayweather duel because it won’t be for “just a few more million.” Mayweather is guaranteed a $120 million paycheck, the biggest in his career, while Pacquiao is assured $80 million. If the pay-per-view revenues soar as expected, their paychecks get a proportionate boost. Pacquiao could take home as much as $100 million.

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Top Rank chairman Bob Arum said the pay-per-view buys could reach four million, way over the record of 2.4 million that Mayweather and Oscar de la Hoya registered in 2007. The estimate isn’t a remote possibility. The fight is five years in the making and fans have waited too long for it to finally happen.

Mayweather, 38, couldn’t care less if fans love or hate him. All he wants is for fans to pay good money to watch him in the ring. He likes to play the villain’s role, the anti-hero. It’s his way of showing he doesn’t conform to tradition or norms of conduct. It’s his way of expressing ego, that he’s The Best Ever so nothing else matters.

“Some pay to see me win, some pay to see me lose but they all pay,” he once said. “I’m running my mouth a lot and I’m looking for a guy to shut me up. If you don’t shut me up, I’m going to keep running my mouth.” Mayweather should be careful what he looks for because Pacquiao might just be the man to shut him up for good.