Mayweather likely to retire after Andre Berto fight

Floyd Mayweather

The first time Floyd Mayweather was asked if he had made enough money to retire he replied: ‘Bill Gates is still working.’

That was a couple of years ago. Put the same question to Mr Money on the eve of his last fight and the only sportsman who has come remotely close to equalling the fortune amassed by Mr Microsoft answers: ‘Bill Gates’ job ain’t like mine.’

‘You can make a lot more money but you still want to be able to talk and walk. My legacy is not being hit too much. I’m getting out at the top and most importantly with all my faculties intact.’

That said, he transmits a message through the ether to Mr Gates: ‘My job is combat.’

Perhaps his father Floyd Snr and uncle Roger Mayweather - who are also his trainers - were included in the mailing list.  

Both were world-class fighters in their own right but they carry the scars of battle, most notably in their somewhat indistinct speech. Listening to them talk, Mayweather is believed to have decided he does not want to end up the same. 

Hence he made himself the undisputed master of the noble art of defence. Thus, at 38, his brain is as sharp as the elusive movement and pin-point punches which he believes distinguish him as The Best Ever.

He is ready to take that clarity of thinking and fluency of tongue into a new life as the discoverer and developer of the ring stars of the future. Having proclaimed Manny Pacquiao as his successor to the throne of greatest pound-for-pound boxer on the planet, he is going in search of the next Floyd Mayweather.

When I asked him who would be the best man still standing come Saturday midnight, once he has beaten Berto and bade his farewell to the world from the ring in the MGM Grand Garden Arena, many were startled by his answer. 

After the pair finally met in the ring here in May for the richest fight of all time, Mayweather resented the PacMan’s claims that he had been handicapped in defeat by shoulder injury – and said so in abrasive terms.

Now, as he reflects on his 19 years in the hardest game, he ponders for two or three minutes and says: ‘Pacquiao will be the best after me. We can’t take that away from him, after all he’s done. He’s a great fighter, a great world champion. He is my hardest opponent, my toughest fight.

‘Good young fighters are coming up behind us but to be the best takes more than talent. It takes personality, character, experience and our kind of achievement.’ Dailymail