Mayweather vs. Ortiz: Mayweather Continues to Act Like He's Boxing's No. 1

Floyd Mayweather Jr. made sure to arrive in grand fashion on Tuesday in Las Vegas leading up to his fight with Victor Ortiz on Saturday, stepping out of a $500,000 Maybach 62 S surrounded by an entourage of about 20.

In case you were wondering, a Maybach 62 S is another name for a high-priced luxury car.

It's also another way for the insecure Mayweather to claim he's the alpha male in boxing and should be treated like a king.

Mayweather's showmanship is well-documented, whether it be promoting his fight, claiming Manny Pacquiao takes performance-enhancing drugs or burning $100 bills in nightclubs for kicks.

An argument could be made that Mayweather has earned the right to act like a king, to boast proudly and to add to the No. 1 problem in boxing: overly dramatic promotion that deadens the final product. This is, after all, Floyd Mayweather, one of the best of his generation, a man who holds a 41-0 record and has treated fans to plenty of highlights. But he's making a mockery of himself and the sport. In essence, he's the preeminent example of what has become of boxing, which was supposed to be a sport and not merely a spectacle last time I checked.

True boxing fans watch boxing for a glimpse of a man's meddle inside the ring, his dedication to his craft and his heart. Part of the allure of boxing has always been the underdog, the man who came from nothing and rose up to shock the world. Some of the most glorified champions were identified as one of our own, a hero of the working class.

Ironically enough, Mayweather could fit into the category of rising from humble beginnings if he wanted to, growing up as a kid with a father in federal prison. But he chooses to promote himself as royalty, which actually hurts his popularity in the long run and distances himself from the American people.

It also hurts boxing, which all too often encourages pre-fight skirmishes and swagger to build up a fight that we all know is going to vastly disappoint.

Mayweather has never been accused of being disappointing in the ring, but he's certainly not helping boxing's image or the fact that the sport looks desperate while trying to shove tickets into our hands and empty our wallets.

Mayweather not only isn't the No. 1 boxer in the world, he's acting in a way that distances himself from Pacquiao in terms of respect in the sport.

Mayweather thought that by arriving to Vegas in an expensive car would make him look better, but the reality is he didn't even look as good as Ortiz, who arrived in humble, understated fashion.