By: Sean Crose
“He’s ducking Benavidez.”
So Floyd Mayweather said of Canelo Alvarez at a Thursday press gathering to promote Tank Davis’ Sunday pay per view battle against Isaac Cruz. Mayweather, who dominated the sport of boxing for years, remains the only person to have ever bested Alvarez in the ring. Needless to say, the former great known as “Money” did not come across as being impressed with Canelo’s plan to jump up in weight to face WBC cruiserweight champion Ilunga Makabu. “Do I like this fight?” Mayweather asked rhetorically. “Absolutely not.” As far as Mayweather is concerned, Canelo isn’t facing an opponent whose a true challenge, like he feels David Benavidez is.
“He used to be at the Mayweather Boxing Gym,” Mayweather said of Makabu, “and the guys were really getting the best of him.” Truth be told, Mayweather didn’t appeared to be wowed by Canelo’s skill trajectory over the years. While most serious fans and analysts would likely argue that Canelo has developed by leaps and bounds since he battled Mayweather in 2013, Mayweather himself claimed that Canelo is the “same fighter” as he was when they squared off over seven years ago. “When I fought him he was in his prime,” Mayweather claimed. “When I fought him I was almost forty years old.”
Mayweather thinks it’s unfair that some fighters are overlooked or criticized while others – particularly Canelo – get good press. “What we don’t talk about,” he said to the media Thursday, “is Canelo, Canelo Canelo…steroids, steroids, steroids. You don’t talk about that.” Canelo tested positive for a banned substance several years ago, which he claimed he got from eating beef. Nonetheless, Canelo received a suspension. “He could have been not clean in a lot of fights,” said Mayweather. When asked if he felt Canelo was dirty during their own bout, Mayweather responded matter of factly. “I don’t know,” he said.
Although Mayweather claimed he feels no animosity towards his former opponent (“It’s not a beef. I like Canelo. I like his work.”), he obviously feels the red haired star is over-hyped. “He’s one of the top guys up there,” said Mayweather, “but he’s not the only guy.” Mayweather then went on to add “that kid was a cake walk” when they fought.
As for the matter of having been cocky during his own ring career, Mayweather got straight to the point. “Your supposed to believe in yourself,” he said. “If you don’t believe in yourself, who the fuck’s going to believe in you.”
