Mayweather gambles and laments American support while Pacquiao stays active

Although he has been out of the ring for close to a year now, Floyd Mayweather Jr. chose last weekend to give an interview to the Afternoon Salon ESPN radio show, revealing what he's been spending his time doing, why he still won't fight Manny Pacquiao and to generally complain that as an American he should have more support from his countrymen.

As usual Mayweather avoided questions he didn't like the sound of, and as usual, the interviewers granted access weren't going to push him with any hard questions.

He wasn't asked why or whether he demanded $100 million dollars to fight Manny Pacquiao in South Africa. He wasn't asked when commenting yet again on drug testing procedure, why $100 million would have made some kind of difference. He wasn't asked why, if not Pacquiao, he doesn't fight someone else, Sergio Martinez for example. He also wasn't asked whether the recent rumors that he is in negotiations to fight Paul Spadafora are true.

(It should be noted that Jeff Mayweather, contrary to remarks from Spadafora's promoter, has denied that any talks are taking place)

What Mayweather did talk about at length was his habit of betting on sports, which he says he indulges every day, and why he doesn't think he's getting enough support from his fellow Americans.

“The thing is this I’m an American citizen and I represent this country with the red, white, and blue. The only thing I want is the people in my country to stand behind me. I’m in my own country and I have a lot of people against me. Our country is a great country, it’s a clean country, and all I ask him to do is take the test, that’s it. He takes the test and we got a fight.”

As far as American athletes go, Mayweather is certainly not supported as widely as those in other sports tend to be.

One of the main reasons however is because of his generally poor relationship with the media.

The boxing media tends to view him negatively because he could be doing so much more with the talent that he has.

The mainstream media doesn't pay him as much attention as they might because of all the negative things associated with him; the alleged assaults on women, the petty run-ins with security guards, the steroid accusations against fellow fighters.

In neither case has Mayweather strived to improve this situation.

Oddly Mayweather himself then touched on another major reason he isn't more well liked in his own country.

“Everybody is entitled to their own opinion. Floyd Mayweather goes out and makes money for Floyd Mayweather. Everybody is entitled to their own opinion. When it’s all said and done and my career is over, the fans don’t come pay my bills, the fans don’t put my kids through college, and the fans don’t put my kids through private school, I do. Through my hard work.”

The fans who pay to watch Mayweather's fights and have indirectly given him every dollar he has ever made aren't going to be paying his bills after he retires? An puzzling stance to take to say the least.

Photos: Yuriorkis Gamboa finishes Jorge Solis in four

Mayweather's chief rival Manny Pacquiao by comparison knows that when he fights, he fights for Filipino people everywhere, that he gives hope to all those who didn't make it out of the situation he himself was in when he was younger.

Mayweather fights for himself first and foremost, and aside from handing out turkeys at thanksgiving, a point he mentions a lot more often than necessary, doesn't seem to be motivated to action by his long suffering fans.

Even a fight between the pair notwithstanding, the fact that Pacquiao is an active fighter goes a long way towards his continued support.

Currently Pacquiao fights twice per year, regular as clockwork. Since 2007 Mayweather has fought twice, and it isn't ever clear to fans when he will next take to the ring.

On top of everything else though, the fact that Mayweather generates more U.S pay per view sales than any other fighter in the world today including Pacquiao would seem to suggest that he does have support.

Boxing is still in some respects a fringe sport in the United States at the moment having been without a real heavyweight star since the 90's, and generating well over a million pay per view buys is hardly the mark of a fighter who isn't still popular, despite what often look like his best efforts to the contrary.

Jose Santiago, Pitt: "Floyd is a nice guy in person but his egomaniac persona just turns people off and until he drops it and is just himself he won't get big support"

James Shipton, Harrisburg: "Even Spadafora would be something, I'm a Mayweather fan and all we've had for the last year is bad news. Getting arrested and bragging about sports betting isn't what professional athletes who represent their entire sport should be doing"

Source: http://www.examiner.com/