Mayweather Out To Reclaim Mantle As Boxing's Best

Love him or hate him, the mere mention of Floyd Mayweather's name elicits a strong reaction from boxing fans. His mainstream profile has also grown bigger than any other fighter's because of a run on the popular reality series "Dancing With the Stars," a heavily hyped wrestling appearance at last year's WrestleMania, not to mention starring in a ubiquitous AT&T commercial that seems to be on television every 10 seconds.

But after 17 months out the ring in a retirement virtually nobody thought would last, the former five-division champion indeed finally announced his comeback earlier this month.

On July 18 (HBO PPV) at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Mayweather (39-0, 25 KOs) will face lightweight champ Juan Manuel Marquez (50-4-1, 37 KOs), the pound-for-pound star who will jump two divisions for the fight at a maximum weight of 144 pounds, nine more than where Marquez is champion.

"I'm not overlooking Juan Manuel Marquez, and I hope he's not overlooking me," Mayweather said. "He knows I've been off awhile so he might think I'm rusty, but I'm not. I'll be ready."

When Mayweather walked away, he was on top of the sport, the universal choice as pound-for-pound king and the reigning welterweight champion. His final two fights in 2007 against Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton generated a staggering 3.4 million pay-per-view buys in the United States.

Now, Mayweather says he is back to reclaim the mantle of No. 1 that Manny Pacquiao now holds, even though, as Mayweather says, he never lost his status in the ring.

"One day, somebody may shut my mouth. As of right now, I'm the top dog," Mayweather said. "I'm the king. I'm here to stay. I left on top, came back on top. I'm here to fight and reclaim what's mine. Nobody has ever took my throne. So how am I not the king if nobody ever took my throne?"

With his impending ring return, Mayweather, who is in London with Marquez wrapping up this week's six-day, three-city, two-country media tour to promote the fight, brings an avalanche of publicity to boxing.

"He crossed over to being a mainstream star," said Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather's close friend and adviser and CEO of Mayweather Promotions, which is working with Golden Boy on the fight. "He will bring more fans to the sport and overall that will uplift the sport."

Mayweather certainly injects a jolt into the sport like no other and he's more than happy to tell you all about it.

CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images

Floyd Mayweather and Co. believe that when it comes to the biggest fights in boxing, all roads lead through them.
"When you talk boxing, you talk Floyd Mayweather," he said. "I'm back because the sport of boxing needs Floyd Mayweather. The sport truly needs me and the fans really want me. Wherever I go, they go crazy. I'm the most controversy in the sport."

If you buy the rap, the good news for boxing is that Mayweather is back for the long haul. A source with direct knowledge of his deal with Golden Boy Promotions told ESPN.com that Mayweather's deal is for five fights.

That ought to give him ample time to face boxing's biggest names, including an eventual showdown with Pacquiao, the fight the public is already demanding. If Mayweather gets past Marquez, which he is expected to do as a 3-1 favorite against the smaller man, there are several potential megafights for him: Pacquiao, Shane Mosley and Miguel Cotto among them.

So what about it, Floyd?

"The thing you got to realize about Floyd Mayweather is I don't need to call out no fighters," he said, making it clear that he thought Marquez deserved to win both of his controversial fights with Pacquiao [a draw and split decision].

Ellerbe made Mayweather's plans after Marquez a bit more clear.

"I can tell you this right now that we're gonna line all these guys up, whoever the so-called best guys are, whoever they say they, and we'll line up," he said. "Obviously, he can't fight them all in one night. But one by one, so whoever it is. He left the best, he's coming back the best. All roads lead to Floyd Mayweather."

Besides Pacquiao and Cotto, difficult bouts to make because of Mayweather's terrible relationship with Top Rank's Bob Arum, his former promoter, there is also Mosley.

"Mosley had a good win with [Antonio] Margarito," Ellerbe said. "We can't fight him right now, but he's one of the top fighters. We recognize he's one of the top fighters. He can get it too."

The time off was something Mayweather said he needed after several major fights in a row. He said he returned because he missed boxing. He also undoubtedly returned for the money, even though he doesn't want to acknowledge the millions he owes to the IRS.

"Floyd truly needed a break away from the sport and he had to realize that he missed the sport," Ellerbe said. "I think by him taking the time off and doing some other business ventures, he realized it. He's well rested."

Said Mayweather, flashing his million-dollar smile, about his return: "Somebody got to keep the sport up and running, so why not me?"

Source: sports.espn.go.com