If Floyd Mayweather Jr. feels pressure inside the boxing ride, then he hides such emotion carefully. Few fighters have ever been as cool, calm and collected between the ropes. But, if those involved needed any reminder that the huge Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao Megafight is like any other commercial product which has a “sell by” date, then they got on Wednesday when the Honorable Melissa Saragosa took the 34 year old, undefeated fighter to the verbal woodshed in Las Vegas Justice Court. In handing down a 90-day local jail term for “Money,” Saragosa noted that Mayweather grew up around domestic violence and was now pleading guilty to subjecting “Baby Mama” Josie Harris and two of their children to the same household horror. In fairness, the judge did say her somewhat lenient sentence was affected by the good deeds the multimillionaire who lives in what he likes to refer as “the Big Boy Mansion” has done on behalf of thle less fortunate in Clark County. My key point, though, is that Mayweather is now standing–putting the brief jail stay aside–with one foot on a banana peel and the other on a heaviuly greased roller skate. Now there is extreme pressure on Mayweather to avoid any kind of misconduct. Now Mayweather must lead a totally law abiding life. If there was ever a guy who cannot now risk even spitting on a sidwalk, it is him. Which is why I think newly installed HBO boxing bossman Ken Hershman, who starts work in January, can be a positive and influential figure here.
