Why Won't Floyd Mayweather Fight Top Welterweights?

james stansberry — Wed, 20 May 2009 23:50:03 -0400

Well, here we go again. For a fight fan such as myself, these last few years have been good. Just when you come down off the adrenaline of a huge fight like Manny Pacquiao and Ricky Hatton, with all its hype and excitement, here comes another great fight to start the cycle of blogging.

The fight I am referring to is Cotto vs. Clottey. Two top welterweights who are facing off for supremacy, and hopefully a showdown with Shane Mosely. Welterweights are fast like the smaller guys, but with middleweight type power for those of us who don't mind seeing somebody put to sleep.

Oh, what’s that you say? You didn't think I was going to mention the Cotto-Clottey fight as the next big fight?

Instead, you probably expected me to buy into this hooplah about Floyd Mayweather’s return to the ring to face a lightweight as the best thing happening in boxing. Sorry to disappoint the many Mayweather fans, but I am not impressed at all. (Brian Kenny from ESPN doesn't appear to be either.)

What I would like to know is this, how does a fighter get to be a pound for pound best when he flat out refuses to fight the best guys in his own division? Fight fans, The Ring Magazine, and countless bloggers (along with myself) have been screaming for Mayweather to fight Miguel Cotto and "Sugar" Shane Mosely for years now. There was always an excuse, a reason why he was ducking them. I thought there was no way he would be able to duck Cotto without hearing it from the fans of boxing, but he did.

To make things worse he retired, leaving the debate to go on forever. Could Cotto cut off the ring and get to Floyd’s body? Did Shane still have enough left in the tank to give the Pretty Boy his first professional loss? We would never know the answers to these questions.

Well, Shane Mosely absolutely destroyed Antonio Margaritto, and in the meantime in Cotto's comeback fight he looked as sharp as ever. Then the news came out, Floyd is coming out of retirement. I knew it, the answers we have all been waiting for.

The welterweight division just got deeper, as if that was even possible. What, JMM? That's whom Floyd is fighting? Are you serious? Isn't he still a welterweight? Wait, let me get this right. Floyd is coming back and fighting a lightweight and you people applaud him for this?

Emmanual Stewart, world renowned trainer and founder of the famous Kronk Gym, said this of Mayweather and Cotto after Cotto's annihilation of Zab Judah and defeat of Shane Mosely, "Cotto is at the top, he is No. 1, I don't even consider Mayweather at the top (of the welterweight division) because he is not going to get in the ring with this guy. After Cotto there are three or four guys battling for No. 2, but Mayweather can't be in the conversation because he won't fight any of them for whatever reason."

As a life long boxing fan this makes me sick to my stomach. Floyd Mayweather openly says he will not fight Cotto or Mosely or Margaritto, then comes out of retirement to fight a lightweight and he thinks he is working his way back to the p4p list?
The worst part about this is that people who supposedly know boxing act like Floyd is doing something courageous.

And for all the people who want to say Floyd has never ducked anybody and isn't afraid of anybody, look at the quote from Manny Stewart, you think you know more than him? I didn't think so. So PBF is fighting JMM? Big deal, let me know when he gets the gumption to fight the top guys in his own division, it might take a while.

Merchant Gives MMA Some Of It's Own Medacine...And They Don't Like It

james stansberry — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 12:38:43 -0500

First let me start by saying WOW! What a great fight that was Saturday night between Mosely and Margarito. I was very excited watching them walk into the ring, no doubt this was going to be a war. As I watched Mosely walking into the ring I heard Merchant babbaling and made a statement along the lines of Delahoya being at a nearby MMA event and how you would have to pay him to attend one.

I chuckled. Not because I dislike MMA but because of how smug Merchant came off. I'm no Merchant fan, and his post fight interviews are barley tolerable, but this was Merchant at his best. And now the world of MMA wants his head on a platter.

Fans of MMA are calling for appolagies, saying Oscar Delahoya should step up and set the record straight, have Afflictions back, and even saying HBO should fire Larry Merchant for this one insignificant statement!POPPYCOCK AND RUBBISH I SAY!!!!

Where are the world of MMA's manners at when Joe Rogan and Chuck Liddel go on Sports Center and claim that boxing is a dead sport, verbally jab at some of the champions of the boxing world saying that they wouldn't last one round in an MMA ring(and they might not, as well an MMA fighter would get decapitated in the boxing ring). And Danna White, with his constant frowning upon of boxing, from how it's run to how limited it's athletes are, makes my stomach turn and made Merchants words(plus a packed house) a nice slap to the face for MMA and it's fans.

Now don't go thinking I'm an MMA hater, because I'm not. I've watched UFC and Pride for years. But I love boxing and I can only hear "boxing is dead" so much before retaliation must be taken. To all you MMA fans who are makeing a big deal about Larry Merchant's statements take a look at some of the top figures in your own sport and see how many disrespectful things are said of boxing before you go crying foul, this is boxing, a mans sport. We don't cry over here.

Bleacher Report - Articles by james stansberry

Why Won't Floyd Mayweather Fight Top Welterweights?

Merchant Gives MMA Some Of It's Own Medacine...And They Don't Like It