Floyd Mayweather Future Confirmed by Leonard Ellerbe Amid Return Rumors

Retired boxer Floyd Mayweather will not be making a return to the sport, according to the chief executive officer of Mayweather Promotions Leonard Ellerbe.

Money claimed he was to hang up the gloves for good following a comfortable victory over Andre Berto in September, but many—including Gennady Golovkin and Sugar Ray Leonard, per Keith Idec of BoxingScene.com and TMZ, respectively—have predicted he'll be back.

However, Ellerbe took to social media to confirm Floyd’s words should be taken at face value:

Admittedly, there are few things left for Mayweather to accomplish in the sport of boxing. Although he was often accused of cherry-picking opponents during his career, the unbeaten American fought some of the very best fighters of this generation, including Manny Pacquiao and Oscar De La Hoya.

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Mayweather, while still imperious against Berto, will also be wary about hanging around in the sport for too long. His reflexes, defensive skills and counter-punching were razor sharp in his last outing, but in boxing, one lapse in judgement can quickly blemish a stellar legacy. Now 38 years old, the American will know it’ll be tough to preserve such astonishing levels for much longer.

His last few fights haven’t been particularly entertaining either, most notably the bouts with Berto and Pacquiao. As noted by FightNights.com, a lot of fans have lost faith in the big occasions because of the moribund nature of the much-hyped Mayweather-Pacquiao:

There will be factors that could tease Floyd into a return eventually, though. A career record of 49-0, just one win away from surpassing Rocky Marciano’s longstanding landmark, does feel a little incomplete. As a proud fighter, Mayweather will surely feel a little underwhelmed by his last bout against Berto.

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There are big challenges around too. Amir Khan is a fighter who has continually made his intentions clear to go up against Mayweather, while the boxing stratosphere would love to see the American pitted against the big-hitting WBA, IBF, WBC and IBO middleweight champion, Golovkin.

ESPN’s Skip Bayless thinks if Floyd wants to bolster his bank balance even more, then there are hugely lucrative fights still out there:

However, as we can see courtesy of the retired fighter’s Instagram account, he seems to be enjoying his time away from the sport:

For how long that satisfaction continues will be intriguing to see. Mayweather is a man that has had a competitive edge in his life for almost two decades and finding something to replace that void will be tough, especially with many options still potentially there for Floyd should he come back to the ring.

Ellerbe is a man who knows Mayweather better than most, meaning his assessment of the situation should be considered pretty seriously. So while rumours will continue to swirl about a possible return to action further down the line, it doesn’t look as though Money has any immediate intentions on lacing up the gloves any time soon.