Unfortunately for Floyd Mayweather, there’s nothing he can do to make people respect him as a fighter.
They are too busy hating who he is as a person.
Right or wrong, Mayweather’s brash personality and boastful antics overshadow his talent in the ring. And considering how extraordinary his accomplishments are inside of the squared circle, it speaks in volumes to how he is publicly perceived and how it is difficult to separate the talent from the persona. Last night’s finish of Victor Ortiz was a prime example of why Mayweather will never, ever get his just due. Even if you are a fan of Mayweather, you should understand that what happened did nothing for his credibility in the ring. Instead, it made his “Bad Boy Floyd” image grow in stature.
Victor Ortiz was being dominated as expected before the controversial finish. Those of you that gave him a shot likely watched too much HBO 24/7 and not enough boxing to realize that Mayweather’s pedigree dwarfed Ortiz’. Most casual fight fans rooted for Ortiz because of his rough upbringing and likable personality. Others just will root for anybody that faces Floyd Mayweather. He’s the man you pay to see lose. Truthfully, nobody was surprised that Mayweather was dominating the fight. Deep down inside, you know he’s the better fighter. All most people want is to see him fail. Even before the two piece that hurried Ortiz to his face to face meeting with the canvas took place, Mayweather was being scrutinized. It wasn’t because of his performance in the ring. It was because…well…he’s an a**hole.
Floyd Mayweather is an a**hole with more money than the law should allow. He’s an a**hole who knows just how good he is and isn’t afraid to say it. He’s an a**hole because he will turn up the volume on his evil image to make sure you tune in. Without that persona, Floyd Maywether isn’t making $25 million a fight. He feeds on your hatred and turns it into dollar signs. But the thing that gnaws at him to the point where he completely disregards it publicly is that he wants you to respect his talent. He’s over the “I hate that guy” part. But he simply cannot understand why he is not considered one of the greatest fighters of all-time.
Sadly, he won’t get that until he is long gone from the sport.
But back to the Ortiz fight. Floyd Mayweather did nothing wrong. Should he have waited for Ortiz to get ready? That’s debatable. The fact of the matter is that referee Joe Cortez said “fight,” Ortiz and Mayweather touched gloves and the fight was back on – whether Ortiz knew it or not. If there is anyone to blame for what happened to Ortiz it should be the referee. In boxing, it is his job to take control of the fight. When the intentional head butt happened (which somehow has been lost by the Mayweather detractors), Cortez should have docked Ortiz a point, realized just how incensed that Mayweather was and got between both fighters and gave them a quick speech to make sure the fighters kept it clean. The other thing he did wrong was that he didn’t push the fighters far enough apart to where Mayweather couldn’t hit Ortiz. Cortez made a major error. Because of that, Ortiz paid the price. Yes, Ortiz should have realized that he was in a fight and had his hands up. But he was clearly on another planet and feeling terrible that he let his emotions get the best of him with that head butt. It happened very fast and only those of us with the benefit of instant replay and slow motion can try to say what should have, could have and would have happened.
The fight game is the hurt business, not the kiss and make up business. Those that said that Mayweather shouldn’t have punched Ortiz into next week are the very same people who were pissed off that Manny Pacquiao didn’t pulverize “Sugar” Shane Mosley after Mosley continuously hugged and hi-fived the man who he was supposed to be fighting. They called that fight a sham and likely wouldn’t have been mad if the Pac Man obliterated Mosley after his seventh hug. But we like Pacquiao because he’s a likable, non-threatening guy outside the ring. Mayweather, on the other hand, is a jerk.
I’m not here to defend Mayweather’s antics outside of the ring, my issue is how the hatred for Mayweather as a person bleeds into his performance in the ring. The truth is that Mayweather would have likely knocked out Ortiz in the later rounds. The truth is that Ortiz head butt started all of this controversy and he actually got what he deserved. If Ortiz had broken Mayweather’s nose with that head butt, chances are that people would have cheered as Mayweather bled profusely from his nose. Deny it if you want to, but Mayweather haters would have loved to see that. They would have thought Mayweather got what he deserved. Instead, Mayweather did nothing illegal and took the “eye for an eye” path to victory. Once Ortiz opted to try and crush Mayweather’s face with his skull, all bets were off.
But to some people, that doesn’t matter. Floyd Mayweather’s 42-0 record doesn’t matter. The fact that he’s dominated the sport for years doesn’t matter. His impeccable defense that will likely allow him to retire with all of his faculties intact doesn’t matter. He’s turned a brutal sport into an art and he’ll never be credited for it because of who he is outside of the ring. Some bring race into it, others say he ducks better fighter and doesn’t deserve the respect he wants as a fighter.
The truth is that Floyd Mayweather is the best boxer on the planet. Manny Pacquiao has lost, Mayweather has not. If you want to say “I hate Floyd Mayweather” go ahead. But you cannot discredit his accomplishments in the ring. He has never been a dirty fighter. He has never resorted to disrespectful antics inside of the ring. He has only gone in there and ripped to shreds everyone that has been put in front of him.
Maybe you’ll look back and change your opinion on him as a fighter. Until then, he’ll keep cashing in on your hatred.
Who really wins in the end?
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