Floyd Mayweather Is Destined to Try to Retire 50-0
Floyd "Money" Mayweather Jr. always has two things on his mind: money and legacy. The logical path to more of both is to pursue the record for longest undefeated championship career in the history of the sport.
Hall of Fame heavyweight Rocky Marciano retired as champion in 1956, just short of his 34th birthday. His last fight was in September of 1955. Mayweather has said his next fight will be in September.
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Mayweather will tie the mark if he wins in September. Are you catching the correlation here? It's a perfect setup for an effective promotional strategy to hype the fight. Next year will mark the 60th anniversary of Marciano's triumphant exit from the sport. The significance of the potential accomplishment has to be a lure for Mayweather.
Money has repeatedly said that fight will be his last, as it will conclude his current Showtime/CBS contract. However, let's be honest, do we really think Mayweather can resist going for such a round and perfect record like 50-0? By his own admission, he contradicts himself at times.
Mayweather has staked claim to the moniker "The Best Ever" aka TBE.
To have such a hallowed record in his possession wouldn't win over his haters, but it sure would add another dose of validity to his claim. Boxing purists know that more goes into being the G.O.A.T than an undefeated record, but even the most stringent evaluator of pugilistic accomplishments would have to give credit to a man who walks away from the sport 50-0.
The hype and additional revenue Mayweather could earn in such a historic bout would also be a plus.
While it's hard to imagine the fight garnering the same payday that his bout with Manny Pacquiao generated, I wouldn't imagine he'd make less than $50-60 million for the fight. We've seen him with checks for $35-40 million for far less significant bouts.
The lure of money alone isn't going to get Mayweather to fight beyond his Showtime contract. Mayweather is a student of the art of boxing. His father and uncle attained some measure of distinction in the sport, and Mayweather has been around the game for all of his life.
For Mayweather to resist the urge to break Marciano's record would be similar to Barry Bonds bowing out before surpassing Babe Ruth or Hank Aaron on the all-time home run list. Bonds' godfather is Willie Mays, and his dad was Bobby Bonds. Barry understood full well how much breaking those Hall of Famers' records would impact his legacy.
Don't think for a moment Money isn't aware. Whether it's a rematch with Pacquiao or a bout that equates to a farewell fight, I'd bet on seeing Mayweather go for 50-0 in 2016.
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