Poll coming. In the meantime, here's an interesting Dan Rafeal blog:
There are few who believe that former pound-for-pound king and welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. is permanently retired. Among the nonbelievers is his estranged father, Floyd Mayweather Sr.
Mayweather Sr. believes not only that his son will fight again but his unretirement is imminent.
"Of course, there is no question about it," he said when asked Wednesday whether he thought his son would fight again. "He's trying to get a fight right now, as we speak. He's gonna fight again."
Mayweather Sr. trains junior welterweight champion Ricky Hatton, whom Mayweather Jr. knocked out in December 2007 before announcing his retirement six months later. Mayweather Sr. made the comments during a teleconference call appearance with Hatton to promote the fighter's May 2 HBO pay-per-view bout against Manny Pacquiao, the man who took over the pound-for-pound mantle when Mayweather Jr. retired.
Maybe there is something to what Mayweather Sr. said. After lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez retained the title by knocking out Juan Diaz in the ninth round Saturday night in Houston, he called out Mayweather.
Unable to land a third fight with Pacquiao, Marquez (50-4-1, 37 KOs) said he instead wants to fight Mayweather. On Sunday, I spoke to Golden Boy Promotions' Richard Schaefer, who promotes Marquez and was involved in promoting Mayweather's last two fights (against Hatton and, in the richest fight in boxing history, Golden Boy boss Oscar De La Hoya).
Schaefer said he was going to work on trying to make a Mayweather-Marquez fight, which likely would take place somewhere between 140 and 147 pounds.
I spoke to Schaefer again on Thursday, and he reiterated that he was serious about trying to put the fight together and has been in touch with Mayweather adviser Al Haymon.
"I'm serious. Marquez is serious," Schaefer said. "Marquez actually held a press conference [Wednesday] in Mexico City, and he was clear that he likes to take on the biggest challenges. And it's obvious Pacquiao is running from him, so he has his sights set on Mayweather, who he considers the best pound-for-pound fighter. He said if Mayweather is serious about fighting, he should come out of hiding and let's fight."
Mayweather (39-0, 25 KOs), who turned 32 on Feb. 24, recently told his advisers, Haymon and Leonard Ellerbe, that they were free to listen to offers for fights, leading many to believe it would be only a matter of time before he laces up his gloves again.
Conventional wisdom says Mayweather, who turned down an overture to face Shane Mosley in the wake of his January knockout of Antonio Margarito, may be waiting for the outcome of Hatton-Pacquiao and is interested either in a rematch with Hatton or a showdown with Pacquiao, the man who replaced him atop the pound-for-pound list. Now, Marquez may be in the picture as well. It's certainly an easier fight to make than one with Pacquiao, who is promoted by Top Rank's Bob Arum. Mayweather and Haymon have had a serious falling out with Arum.
Schaefer said he had a preliminary conversation with Haymon about a Mayweather-Marquez fight this week.
"I started having a conversation with Al [after] the Houston fight," Schaefer said. "He said, 'Let's see if this is something we can put together.' So I'm going to see if we can put that fight together. I will try to get it done. If Mayweather is serious about coming out of retirement, I think it's a good fight for him and a big challenge for Marquez. He's never backed down from any challenge, and to take on Mayweather is no easy fight."
Mayweather Sr. believes not only that his son will fight again but his unretirement is imminent.
"Of course, there is no question about it," he said when asked Wednesday whether he thought his son would fight again. "He's trying to get a fight right now, as we speak. He's gonna fight again."
Mayweather Sr. trains junior welterweight champion Ricky Hatton, whom Mayweather Jr. knocked out in December 2007 before announcing his retirement six months later. Mayweather Sr. made the comments during a teleconference call appearance with Hatton to promote the fighter's May 2 HBO pay-per-view bout against Manny Pacquiao, the man who took over the pound-for-pound mantle when Mayweather Jr. retired.
Maybe there is something to what Mayweather Sr. said. After lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez retained the title by knocking out Juan Diaz in the ninth round Saturday night in Houston, he called out Mayweather.
Unable to land a third fight with Pacquiao, Marquez (50-4-1, 37 KOs) said he instead wants to fight Mayweather. On Sunday, I spoke to Golden Boy Promotions' Richard Schaefer, who promotes Marquez and was involved in promoting Mayweather's last two fights (against Hatton and, in the richest fight in boxing history, Golden Boy boss Oscar De La Hoya).
Schaefer said he was going to work on trying to make a Mayweather-Marquez fight, which likely would take place somewhere between 140 and 147 pounds.
I spoke to Schaefer again on Thursday, and he reiterated that he was serious about trying to put the fight together and has been in touch with Mayweather adviser Al Haymon.
"I'm serious. Marquez is serious," Schaefer said. "Marquez actually held a press conference [Wednesday] in Mexico City, and he was clear that he likes to take on the biggest challenges. And it's obvious Pacquiao is running from him, so he has his sights set on Mayweather, who he considers the best pound-for-pound fighter. He said if Mayweather is serious about fighting, he should come out of hiding and let's fight."
Mayweather (39-0, 25 KOs), who turned 32 on Feb. 24, recently told his advisers, Haymon and Leonard Ellerbe, that they were free to listen to offers for fights, leading many to believe it would be only a matter of time before he laces up his gloves again.
Conventional wisdom says Mayweather, who turned down an overture to face Shane Mosley in the wake of his January knockout of Antonio Margarito, may be waiting for the outcome of Hatton-Pacquiao and is interested either in a rematch with Hatton or a showdown with Pacquiao, the man who replaced him atop the pound-for-pound list. Now, Marquez may be in the picture as well. It's certainly an easier fight to make than one with Pacquiao, who is promoted by Top Rank's Bob Arum. Mayweather and Haymon have had a serious falling out with Arum.
Schaefer said he had a preliminary conversation with Haymon about a Mayweather-Marquez fight this week.
"I started having a conversation with Al [after] the Houston fight," Schaefer said. "He said, 'Let's see if this is something we can put together.' So I'm going to see if we can put that fight together. I will try to get it done. If Mayweather is serious about coming out of retirement, I think it's a good fight for him and a big challenge for Marquez. He's never backed down from any challenge, and to take on Mayweather is no easy fight."
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