Floyd Mayweather Jr. was playing host to reporters on a conference call last week, and he was asked if he was still fighting for respect.
“I feel I’m not fighting for respect,” said Mayweather, who tonight will defend his welterweight championship against Ricky Hatton at MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
“I feel I’ve earned my respect. Just to get rated, pound-for-pound, the best fighter in the world, it’s obvious you had to do something right and somebody had to respect you to put you on that plateau.”
Most boxing writers consider Mayweather (38-0, 24 KOs), who has won titles in five weight classes, to be the top pound-for-pound fighter today. Sixteen publications contribute to one very comprehensive poll on a major Web site and 13 have Mayweather No. 1. Two – including this writer – have Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao at the top and yet another puts Joe Calzaghe of Wales there.
But others wonder how a fighter who rarely goes toe-to-toe and has not fought the best in his division, can have such an accolade bestowed upon him. Bob Arum, chairman of the board of Top Rank Inc., promoted Mayweather for the first several years of what is now an 11-year professional career.
“Mayweather is a good fighter and he has a lot of boxing skills, but I think his deficiencies are his reluctance to mix it up, his lack of punching power, his persona in the ring,” Arum said. “I would never vote for him as the best pound-for-pound fighter.”
Not only doesn’t Arum believe Mayweather is the most impressive fighter in the world, he doesn’t think Mayweather is the best in his division. He said that there are three, perhaps four, other welterweights who would defeat Mayweather. He included his fighter, fellow world champion Miguel Cotto, in that equation.
Arum went on, passionately trying to prove his point.
“Look at his opposition,” Arum said. “He fought (Zab) Judah, and he struggled with Judah. He then fought (Carlos) Baldomir, if you could call it fought. Baldomir is slow as molasses.
Once Mayweather piled up enough points, he didn’t engage against Baldomir.
“And he fought Oscar (De La Hoya), if you want to say he fought. Oscar ran out of gas chasing Floyd and Floyd won a very close fight. And now he is fighting Hatton, who, for a welterweight, is a midget.”
The 5-foot-6, 29-year-old Hatton (43-0, 31 KOs) is better suited for the junior welterweight division; tonight will be just his second at welterweight.
