Floyd Mayweather Jr Continues To Dominate At the Fans’ Pleasure
Increasingly, boxing fans have become upset with Hall of Famer Floyd “Money” Mayweather Jr (50-0, 27 KOs). They accuse him of being a grifter and fleecing the public. But is Mayweather the problem, or is the sport as a whole to blame?
On August 26, in Mexico, Money fought an eight-round exhibition with John Gotti III. There was a scattering of boos throughout. In round two, things turned bizarre when Mayweather fired the referee after getting warned for a punch behind the head. Afterward, Mayweather was the focus of the outrage, and the exhibition was labeled a snoozefest and a complete farce.
THE HYPOCRISY
However, here’s the thing. Too many in the boxing community love celebrity and sensationalism over substance. That would not have been the case decades ago. The boxing public of decades past understood that what truly mattered was the state of active fighters.
That attitude appears to be missing during this current generation. It’s a sad indictment when you see more comments on boxing message boards about a boxing exhibition from Mayweather than a world title defense from light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol or Jaron “Boots” Ennis. It’s why Ryan Garcia gets more attention for what he says on social media than nearly anything he’s done in the ring.
Mayweather gets paid millions to continue to go on what is essentially a world tour. That’s not going to stop anytime soon. As long as that remains the case, the sport’s fanbase only have themselves to blame.
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