Current WBC welterweight and WBA ‘super’ light-middleweight champion Floyd Mayweather has revealed his continued dissolution with the sport and said fighters have it much easier these days than when he was an up-and-comer himself.
The 36-year-old, who is finalizing his preparations to face WBC and WBA ‘regular’ 154lb title holder Saul Alvarez on September 14, believes that the many organizations sanctioning at the higher end are holding boxing back.
He believes there needs to be one champion for each weight class in the future.
Floyd Mayweather
“It’s a lot easier now to fight (as) boxing is tainted, it’s watered down,” lamented Mayweather. “I feel like there are too many belts. It’s too many champions.
“It’s like I said before, it’s so crazy how I beat Miguel Cotto for the WBA junior-middleweight title, right?
“So how did Austin Trout beat Cotto for the WBA championship, and how is Canelo the WBA champ?
“As I said, I don’t understand what’s happening with the sport. We should have one belt, and that’s it.
“I think the sport is real, real tainted now. It’s not like before, where you got guys that had to work their way from the bottom to the top.
“When I was fighting, I wanted to fight Oscar De La Hoya way back, but I couldn’t get the fight. I couldn’t get into the fight until I was on my own until I got my own company.
“I wanted to fight Miguel Cotto when he was undefeated (but) I couldn’t get that fight (either).”
Five weights
Mayweather has won world titles in five different weight classes and is rightly heralded as the best fighter on the planet and the biggest draw to boot.
The American’s upcoming fight with ‘Canelo’ is predicted to break PPV records when it takes place at the MGM Grand next week, with the victor walking away as the undisputed number-one fighter in the game.
The views expressed by ‘Money’ are echoed throughout the media and among fans. More and even more new bodies attempt to reach the top end of boxing and create a fifth major championship belt.
The WBA, who currently have double title holders in each division, has stated to WBN that they are considering scrapping the ‘super’ and ‘regular’ belts they now dish out.
But with that said, that was months ago, and nothing seems to have been done since to ease Mayweather’s displeasure.
