Floyd Mayweather's Next Opponent Must Tout Similar Credibility
Floyd Mayweather can no longer sell a fight on his own.
Money is still cash for himself—he made a cool $32 million for his rematch with Marcos Maidana—but the interest of the general population continues to dwindle as the Floyd Mayweather formula has worn thin over the years.
The formula being:
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- Hype up an opponent no end to secure pay-per-view buys.
- Beat the tar out of said over-matched opponent via alarming efficiency.
- Move on to the next one unless some sort of controversy arose with the finish.
- Controversy? Rematch.
The result has made Mayweather a predictable, annual event rather than something that stands out in a sport that needs the attention.
After a mostly unnecessary rematch with Maidana, brought on by the "controversy" that was his throwing more than 800 punches and not landing even 30 percent of them in the first bout, the proof is apparent thanks to Mayweather's home, Las Vegas.
ESPN.com's David Purdum, broke it down:
"William Hill director of trading Nick Bogdanovich described the betting handle on Mayweather-Maidana II as 'horrible.' The Wynn, Westgate SuperBook, CG Technology and South Point also said the action was light.
'He's a draw, but it's not translating to the betting window,' Rood said of Mayweather.
"
Now, this also dabbles in the greatness of Mayweather. He's so good that Vegas places the odds wildly in his favor. Bettors who roll with the upset could stand to make some serious coin, but that has now been an available option and burnt them 47 times.
They could roll with the favorite, but what fun is it to gamble on an obvious outcome that also has a tiny reward?
It's not, and Mayweather's skill combines with his desire to pick out seemingly weaker opponents, then goes in a blender and creates a scenario in which the well has run dry on Money's career at 37 years of age.
Unless he steps in the ring with a credible opponent.
Hardcore boxing fans knew of Canelo Alvarez, but only a serious marketing push for the bout with Mayweather made him a household name. The same mostly goes for Maidana, whose few high-profile wins were considered fluky more than anything.
The elephant in the room, of course, is Manny Pacquiao.
"At the moment I want to go home, have a break, spend some time with my children and then see who's next in May. Hopefully it's Manny Pacquiao," Mayweather told the press after the Maidana fight, per Jeff Powell of the Daily Mail.
Oh, but "it has to happen on Showtime pay-per-view only and Mayweather Promotions have to do the fight."
Translation—forget about it. Barring a miracle that unearths a joint pay-per-view between two promotions, Mayweather is essentially in the same posture as always in regards to a bout with Pacquiao, sans outright ignoring the possibility this time around.
Another credible option is Amir Khan, who, like Pacquiao, seems to have the sheer in-ring talent to hold his own against Mayweather, but also comes equipped with a major following that would breathe life into dwindling interest levels as Mayweather nears the end of his career.
Khan was seemingly Mayweather's next opponent before removing himself from consideration for religious reasons, hence part of the reason the miserable Mayweather vs. Maidana 2 card even came into existence.
It just so happens that Khan is an ideal opponent as he hails from England, which plays into Mayweather's well-known desire to have a match in Wembley Stadium in London, also bringing in that part of the world even more for pay-per-view buys in the process.
After that, the pool of competitors looks more akin to a kiddie pool. Few have the in-ring capability to make things interesting, even fewer have the credibility with fans.
Make no mistake, fans will line up to see if Mayweather takes a fall. But clearly, even that has lost its luster as it becomes more apparent that the desired superfight is not on the table and his skills are still way ahead of the pack.
Unless Mayweather takes a bigger risk or gives fans what they want—which rarely happens, as fans who watched the Maidana fight until the end saw—he will only continue to fade along with his age into a whimper of a retirement.
Sometimes going out on top is not all it is cracked up to be.
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