Floyd Mayweather could have earned his union card as a stagehand on Thursday during a press conference in midtown Manhattan. One minute he was adjusting a microphone so the speaker could be heard. An instant later, he was repositioning Badou Jack’s WBC Championship belt for better viewing on the dais.
And near the end of the gathering, Mayweather was orchestrating the faceoff with the main-event fighters, positioning one here and one there, making sure he was centered in each photo.
Being a boxing promoter is hard work, even while wearing a diamond-studded Gucci belt buckle. But Mayweather seems to be enjoying it amid constant speculation as to when his retirement as an active boxer might end.
“Am I coming back? Absolutely, not,” Mayweather said Thursday. “I want to live through these fighters.”
Of course, that statement came a day after Mayweather said he was “95 percent” certain he had fought his last bout, leaving a 5 percent chance he could be back. Then he stirred up social media by voicing financial parameters for a much-discussed boxing match with MMA star Conor McGregor.
During his visit through ESPN, Mayweather said he needed a $100 million guarantee to fight McGregor, the UFC lightweight champion, and was willing to double whatever McGregor’s highest purse has been to date.
“Only thing I’m probably interested in is the Conor McGregor fight,” Mayweather said.
On Thursday, he didn’t have much to say about McGregor.
“Different days you feel different ways,” Mayweather said. “Today I feel a little different from how I felt yesterday. Today there’s 100 percent chance I want to stay away from the sport of boxing. I’m older. Next month I’ll be 40. I gave boxing a lot, and boxing gave me a lot. I had a great career. It’s time to help other fighters accomplish their dreams.”
Mayweather preferred to keep the focus on Saturday’s super middleweight unification bout between Jack and James DeGale at Barclays Center. Showtime will televise.
Jack (20-1-2, 12 KOs) is the biggest star at Mayweather Promotions outside of the boss, who ended with a 49-0 record after beating Andre Berto in September 2015. Originally from Sweden, Jack was discovered by Brooklyn heavyweight Shannon Briggs, who encouraged Jack to come to the United States, where he eventually captured his title in April 2015 by beating Anthony Dirrell. He’s coming off a draw against Lucian Bute in April. A month later, Bute tested positive from a banned substance.
DeGale (23-1, 14 KOs) is the IBF super middleweight champ from England. He won his title by defeating Andre Dirrell in May 2015.
Jack-DeGale is considered a good start to the boxing calendar for 2017 after 2016 was basically a snoozer.
“This is anybody’s fight,” said Lou DiBella of DiBella Entertainment. “When you’ve got the best fighting the best for real, it’s hard to make a prediction so I’m not going to.”
With a huge walk-up crowd expected and plenty of foreign press in attendance, the stocked card is a high-profile event for Mayweather Promotions.
“I just want to help the fighters and do what I have to do for my company,” Mayweather said. “This is a big weekend for me. Not just for the fighters.”
Mayweather Promotions isn’t all about building future stars.
“All of the fighters we sign may not become world champions,” Mayweather said. “But someone has to give them the opportunity and that chance. That’s what we do. We give fighters an opportunity and a chance to go out there and accomplish what they want to accomplish.”