Floyd Mayweather vs. John Gotti III: Fight Storylines, Live Stream, Predictions
The Floyd Mayweather exhibition bout circuit will continue on Sunday with a bout against John Gotti III on pay-per-view from FLA Live Arena in Sunset, Florida.
Mayweather has found a way to monetize his legendary boxing skillset with these exhibition bouts. He made his name and money with incredible defense and business savvy. Now, he continues to pile up the wins and cash by taking on a wide array of opponents in exhibition bouts.
Now, Gotti will add his name to that list. The grandson of American crime boss John Gotti has experience as a mixed martial artist and boxer. He's 5-1 in the cage with a 2-0 mark in his more recent ventures in the ring.
He'll get the opportunity to bring more attention to his combat pursuits when he laces up the gloves against a Hall of Famer boxer with a massive following.
Here's a look at all the info you need to catch the exhibition along with the top storylines and a prediction for how the bout will go down.
Fight Info
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When: Sunday, June 11 at 9 p.m. ET. Main Event ringwalk approximately 11 p.m. ET
Where: FLA Live Arena, Sunset, Florida
Live stream: Zeus Network
Top Storylines
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How Hard Will Mayweather Go?
This is the general question that comes with each of these exhibitions that Mayweather has done. At this point, he's done six. Only three of them have had an official result and he's won each one of them.
For Mayweather, there's such a skill gap that has existed in each one that he can generally control the bout without every shifting into a truly competitive gear.
However, as he gets older and he takes on more skilled fighters in these matchups there's going to come a time where he has to hit the accelerator a little bit to come out on top. Gotti may or may not be that guy.
So it will be interesting to see how much effort he really has to put in to keep the much larger Gotti at bay. There doesn't seem to be any bad blood so it's hard to believe he'll try to finish his opponent.
Can This Be a Launching Pad for Gotti?
Gotti obviously has a well-known name, but he has set out to make a name for himself in combat sports.
The 30-year-old started in MMA where he showed some promise in getting off to a 5-0 start with four knockout wins. However, a unanimous decision loss to Nick Alley was the last time he was in the cage.
Since then, he appears to be putting his focus and energy into boxing. He's 2-0 with his latest win coming just five months ago in January when he beat Alex Citrowske at the Mohegan Sun Casino.
Gotti may never become an actual contender on the world stage, but he does have the kind of name recognition where this bout could lead to more opportunities. Celebrity boxing and sideshow events have become profitable business in the world of boxing.
If he can have a few moments in this fight and the event does good enough business, then don't be surprised to see Gotti get a few more opportunities like this one.
Prediction
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There's a certain rhythm that has already been established in these exhibition bouts. That's not likely to change in this one.
John Gotti III has some skills. His success in MMA and boxing aren't just products of matchmaking. That being said, the gulf between his skills and Mayweather's is still massive, even as Mayweather is 46 years old.
The same defensive prowess that allowed Mayweather to slip and dodge attacks from world champion boxers allows him to pretty much control these fights. He will likely start off slow, giving Gotti the opportunity to show him what he's got.
As the fight wears on, Mayweather will likely turn the volume up a little bit until he finds the level he needs to go to make sure there's no question who the winner of the fight is.
From there, it'll likely be cruise control until the final bell rings.
Prediction: Mayweather via decision
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