Floyd Mayweather has refused to rule out the possibility of a return to the ring despite insisting he has no immediate urge to get back in the gym.
One of boxing’s greats, a man who turned his brutal sport in to something of an art form, Mayweather retired last September, with an unblemished 49-fight record.
The spectacularly wealthy ‘Money Man’ earned a reported ?120million for the penultimate fight of his career, his long awaited match-up with Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao last May – a contest Mayweather won at a canter.
But, true to his self- professed love of cash, the 39-year-old admits he could yet lace up his gloves again, as long as the terms for doing so are to his liking.
‘For the right price, I may come back,’ Mayweather told the Los Angeles Times.
‘A lot of fighters have to box. I don’t have to box. I don’t have the urge to go to the boxing gym. My urge is giving back to the sport now, helping promote the young fighters.
Mayweather is widely acclaimed as one of the best pound for pound fighters to ever bestride the planet. And crucial to his invincibility was an ability to avoid being hit.
But the American is wary about the prospect of putting himself back in the firing line.
‘People have to realise, when I look at my uncle Roger (Mayweather, who has health issues), and even Muhammad Ali, boxing is wear and tear’ he said.
‘When I look at it, I’m really thankful I was a defensive fighter. I have all my faculties, a sharp mind, and I know who I am.’
A man who managed his career perfectly, inside and outside the ring, whichever call Mayweather makes, you suspect it will be the right one.
