Floyd Mayweather Slammed by Ricky Hatton, Crazy Airplane Stunt Revealed

Former welterweight champion Ricky Hatton has ridiculed Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s attitude, asking: "What's the point of being the world's best fighter if everyone thinks you're a d--khead?"

The Sun (h/t Richard Arrowsmith of the MailOnline) reported Hatton's comments during an interview. The former British boxer suffered his first career lost to Mayweather in 2007 before succumbing to Manny Pacquiao in 2009 and Vyacheslav Senchenko in 2012.

Having watched Mayweather confirm his status as the best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet during May 2's battle with Pacquiao, Hatton decided to suggest an unbeaten record doesn't outweigh the importance of reputation. Hatton wasn't a fan of Floyd's trash-talk in the buildup to their showdown, per the Sun (h/t Arrowsmith):

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Later in 2007 when our fight was scheduled, Floyd was going: 'I'm going to beat you like a b---h, butt-f--k you.' It was nonsense. Floyd has his way and I have mine, but there's a line between selling tickets and disrespecting the sport. What's the point of being the world's best fighter if everyone thinks you're a d--khead?

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Hatton also provided an extreme example of the lengths Mayweather takes to get ahead of opponents in a more literal fashion. He spoke of a plane descent into New York:

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A few minutes into the the journey, we're chatting away, having a drink when the pilot gestures to me to come forward. 'Hey Ricky, listen to this idiot.' He turns on the speaker and over the radio I hear Floyd arguing with the pilot of his plane behind: 'I'm not letting that motherf----r get there before me, f-----g overtake them!' 'We can't do that, Sir.' 'Overtake that motherf----r—I'm the champ. I've got to get to New York first. I'll pay whatever you want.'

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The buildup to Floyd's fight with Pacquiao was remarkable due to the lack of trash-talking or bad blood between the two brawlers. Mayweather now carries the stature of a man who doesn't feel like he needs to impress anyone. He's 48-0, a multiple world champion and legendary name in the sport no matter what happens.

During the earlier stages of his career, he needed to make an impression in and out of the ring to get noticed. Whether people love or hate Mayweather, it's always seemed important to him that nobody falls down the middle.

His performance against Pacquiao replicated the American's increasingly thoughtful, conscientious manner. Mayweather dominated from the opening round by keeping himself out of danger and picking smart shots to stop Pacquiao's advances.

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It was a professional performance against an opponent whose limitations were made blatantly obvious, but most importantly, Mayweather looked as if he could have ended the fight with a step up in tempo at any point. Only in the fight's aftermath—in which Pacquiao has been forced to undergo shoulder surgery, Rohan Banerjee of the MailOnline reported—have we seen Mayweather get irate with his latest opponent.

"Excuses, excuses, excuses," said Mayweather on Pacquiao's injury, Showtime reported (h/t Arrowsmith). "I knew it was coming, but I'm not going to buy into the bulls--t. And I don't want the public to buy into the bulls--t. He lost, and he knows he lost. I have lost a lot of respect for him after all of this. You fight, if you lose, it's OK."

You can view Mayweather's full interview below (Warning: NSFW language):

Hatton's career hit a downward spiral after losing to Mayweather, who is two years older than him. Many of the sports greats' reactions to defeat and whether or not they can climb the ladder once more after having their momentum stopped sum them up. Mayweather's 10th-round stoppage of Hatton, per BoxRec, was one of those events which eventually went onto define both fighters' careers.

Such fine lines define boxing. Mayweather showed no signs of letting up against Pacquiao and is unlikely to even pay Hatton's comments attention. His brash, often over-the-top antics are well-documented, but he's likely to be satisfied with being remembered as an opinion-splitter with an unblemished record when his career's over.