Mayweather vs. Ortiz Reaction: Cheap Ending Will Tarnish Mayweather's Legacy

Floyd Mayweather should be considered one of the best boxers in the history of the sport. He should be thought of in the same breath as Manny Pacquiao as the best fighter of this generation.

He should be a lot of things, but his cheap actions against Victor Ortiz on Saturday night ruined any chance of him ever being a highly respected fighter ever again.

It was in the fourth round, after the fight was stopped and Ortiz was docked a point for an illegal headbutt, when Mayweather was hugging Ortiz and letting him know there were no hard feelings that the incident occurred.

Mayweather waited until the referee turned his head to signal to the timekeeper that the fight was going to be started and he hit Ortiz with two cheap shots that knocked him out, and the fight was stopped.

It was a pathetic ending to a fight that Mayweather was dominating. He took control of the fight right from the start and was exerting his will on Ortiz through the first three rounds. But because of his brash, confrontational attitude, he could not let Ortiz get away with a headbutt. So he took a cheap shot to score a victory.

For a fighter who is so obsessed with his legacy and wanting to be known as the best fighter in the world, Mayweather continues to do everything he can to make sure that no one ever takes him seriously again.

His legal problems have made him a punch line outside of boxing circles. His criticism of Manny Pacquiao has made him hated both from people inside the sport and outside.  His choice of opponents, prior to Ortiz, left him open to intense media scrutiny because he was taking bouts with subpar opponents.

But none of that did as much to damage his legacy as his cheap shot victory over Ortiz is going to do. If he had continued to fight the way that he was in the first three rounds, he would have won an easy decision, and the super fight with Pacquiao would have been a lock to happen.

Now, Pacquiao has no reason to take a fight with Mayweather because he is a dirty fighter. No other top fighter will want to step in the ring with him because they know at any moment he could attempt a cheap shot.

That perfect 42-0 record that Mayweather holds so near and dear to his heart no longer means anything. He has become the biggest laughingstock in the sport because his ego would not allow him to take a headbutt from another fighter.

On the bright side, Mayweather can cash that nice fat paycheck he will get from this fight and work on settling some of those legal fees that he has to pay thanks to shooting his fat mouth off.

But perhaps the money is all that Mayweather cares about. That would seem to fit his attitude, because it became abundantly clear on Saturday night that he has no respect for the sport of boxing, the fans who paid to see him fight, or Victor Ortiz.

I hope that money lasts him a long time because it is going to have to take the place of a legacy forever tarnished by his cheap antics inside the ring.