GRAND RAPIDS — HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg called Floyd Mayweather’s remarks “unfortunate” in a prepared statement Saturday, one day after the Grand Rapids native criticized the network’s boxing announcers for racial bias.
The six-sentence press release rejected Mayweather’s stated opinion that HBO announcers are biased against black fighters and that network executives coaxed him to cop a misdemeanor assault plea to facilitate a high-profile fight, with little other detail.
“Floyd is a tremendous athlete who gave his all to the sport,” Greenburg said in the statement. “We have nothing but admiration for what he accomplished in the ring.
“His remarks regarding HBO broadcasters and executives are unfortunate and we could not disagree more.
“We will not engage in a debate. We are very disappointed in hearing about this.
“We wish him well in retirement.”
Mayweather, in an exclusive interview with The Press on Friday — his first since announcing his retirement via press release, one month ago today — charged that HBO’s announcers are biased against black fighters.
He specifically claimed the on-air crew was particularly enamored of white middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik and Filipino lightweight champion Manny Pacquiao.
He went on to claim many of the same announcers were unfairly critical of black fighters such as himself, Roy Jones and Bernard Hopkins, during their reigns atop boxing’s mythical pound-for-pound throne.
Mayweather also claimed HBO executives sided with Main Events in 2005 when the promotional company, which represented Arturo Gatti, demanded he resolve an assault case in Grand Rapids before finalizing a pay-per-view bout between the fighters.
Mayweather pleaded no contest to the 2003 incident in which a bouncer was beaten at The Radio Tavern.
