Mayweather vs. Cotto: Money May's Mouth Keeps Boxing Alive

When Floyd Mayweather opens his mouth, people become incensed or they chuckle with glee. There is no middle ground for the most polarizing man in sports, and that makes him crucial for the health of the boxing world. 

HBO's 24/7 is a joy to watch, but that sentiment is multiplied by a million when Floyd Mayweather is featured. 

He will let you know exactly what he thinks, and he will do it with the bluntest of terms and the sharpest of words. 

It may come off as pandering to the camera, but I have long since stopped caring because the tongue lashing works on so many levels. 

He is the ultimate bad guy, as if carved from the pages of WWE lore. It's impossible to not feel a thing for him. You either love him or hate him, but there is no middle ground. 

The mad man with the gift for gab opened his trap again, and he has our ear because the subject is Manny Pacquiao. 

Mayweather stated flat out that he will not fight Manny Pacquiao under the current terms because he is fearful for his health and because he believes Pac-Man is a user of performance-enhancing drugs (via ESPN).

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Health is more important than anything...People say, 'We don't give a f--- if he's taking or not; we just want to see the fight. We don't give a f--- about your health and we don't give a f--- about your family.

It took me years to get to here -- years. I'm going up in weight but I'm not walking through no damn fighters. (Pacquiao) is 106; now he decides to walk through (Miguel) Cotto? Cotto can't knock down (Shane) Mosley, but can he?

"

The obvious hope for millions is that Mayweather will one day fight Manny Pacquiao, but that is looking less likely all the time. 

On Saturday, Money May will take on Miguel Cotto, and that will have to be enough to satiate boxing fans. 

Many will purchase the Pay-per-view event because they want to see perfect boxing in action. But a great many will be watching to see if Money May will finally have his bog mouth shut. 

That's the genius of Mayweather. He is hardly the role model you would want of a superstar, but he is the one that a sport like boxing needs. 

He is brash, boisterous and polarizing, making every one of his bouts a must-see event, even when they don't feature a rival he may never actually fight. 

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