Mayweather vs Mosley
Posted By Anthony Wilson 12:00 PM
"Kid [Shane Mosley] got a jheri curl, man. Come on, man, it's 2010. Kid must have woke up in that Hot Tube Time Machine."" - Floyd Mayweather, ep. 1 of "24/7 Mayweather/Mosley"
HBO's "24/7 Mayweather/Mosley," which premiered Saturday night, marks the fourth time that Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been a featured fighter on the program. As we all know, trash talking has long been a part of boxing and it's a big big part of Floyd's game. It's his style, he uses it as a hype tactic in the promotional stages of his fights - and nowhere is it more evident than when he's on "24/7." He was relatively friendly in his last appearace on the show (for his fight with Juan Manuel Marquez), but spewed enough venom during the co-Oscar de la Hoya and co-Ricky Hatton chapters to more than make up for it.
Now Floyd's at it again, and judging from his behavior on the press tour that should have been expected. But, at least to me, there seemed to be something different about the smack talk in this newest episode. Before it didn't seem real, just what he does and him trying to build the fight. On Saturday night, however, it seemed genuine. On more than one occassion, I sensed true animosity from Mayweather as he disparaged Mosley. I could hear it in his voice and see it in his body language.
"I'm doing Shane Mosley a favor," Mayweather says at the beginning of the show. "I'm letting him share the ring with greatness. Kid's so desperate. He's just an obsessed fan."
Those words may resemble typical Mayweather trash talk, but they were expressed with (to my senses at least) sincere contempt for the first time. There was more where that came from.
Early on in the episode the subject of Mosley's famous interruption of Floyd's post-Marquez-victory interview with Max Kellerman was broached. Footage was shown of Mayweather in the dressing room afterwards, complaining, still angry.
"Man, you know how these bitches is in this sport," Mayweather states. "Total disrespect. Kid has no class, no style at all."
I think that event still irks Floyd, as does Shane's claim that when Mayweather was first coming up he told Mosley, "I think you're a great fighter and I wanna be just like you when I get up in the ranks."
"Shane, I barely know who the f--- you are," Mayweather says angrily. "The f--- you mean I want to be like you? Come on, man. I'm the face of boxing. I'm the cash cow. I hold the record for pay-per-view - me. The highest gate - me."
And towards the end of the show Mayweather states, "Shane Mosley says, "Floyd Mayweather fights for money." You f-----‘ dummy. I'm a prizefighter. That's what I'm supposed to fight for: a prize. Duh."
Just another diatribe from a man known for them, some might say, but I think I saw real hostility in his eyes.
Maybe it's just me, but the ultimate agitator seems to be agitated himself.
Elsewhere, we are given a glimpse into the USADA drug testing procedure. Two members of the agency show up unannounced to Floyd's camp in Las Vegas one day while he is training and wait until he is finished to conduct the tests. He cannot leave their site until then.
When his workout is concluded, Mayweather is accompanied into the restroom by a USADA doping control officer. The urine test is conducted first. Dehydrated, he is unable to provide enough of a sample and is instructed to keep the container in his possession until he can fill it. The blood drawing cannot be done until the completion of a two hour cool down period. A USADA chaperone must stay with him at all times until both tests are finished. The blood is drawn at Floyd's mansion, where, after five hours of waiting, the urine test is also finally completed. Later, Mosley is shown to undergo the testing as well.
"All I'm trying to is make a stand for something I truly believe is right," Floyd says. "There's too many fighters dying. Too many fighters getting brain damage. And you don't know what these fighters are taking."
If I haven't said much about camp Mosley thus far it's because there isn't much to say about them after on this episode. Brother Nazim is introduced, the story of his stroke from three years ago is detailed, and we get a hint his inimitable rhetoric, but other than that nothing too notable comes from the Mosley camp. There certaiinly are no surprises from Shane, he is who we thought he was: a quiet professional who does his talking in the ring.
"I know Mayweather, I know how he is," Shane says. "You could do whatever you want to do, just show up May 1st. I have no problems with you. Just show up May 1st. And we can do it from here *holds up fist* We can start talking from the hands."
There is no truer fighter or competitor than him in the sport.
"I'm not boxing right now because I'm trying to get a paycheck," Mosley states. "I'm fighting right now because everybody's saying that these other guys are better than me. And I don't believe that. And I want to show the world that I'm the best."
The first step for him in achieving that goal is slightly less than three weeks away.
Source: sportingnews.com
