FightHype's coverage of Mayweather vs. Ortiz, as well as the exclusive Mayweather Aftermath videos that followed, sparked a ton of reaction, both good and bad, from fans and media alike regarding Floyd Mayweather's actions and his future plans in the sport. The emails have not stopped pouring in since the conclusion of the September 17 bout. Although I don't have all the answers, I do have an opinion, so check out what I had to say to inquiring minds who want to know more about Mayweather, Ortiz, Khan, and of course Manny Pacquiao.
Hey Ben, I emailed you several times but I know you get a lot of emails but hopefully you can get back to me this time!! :) . I wanted to see what your thoughts were regarding Roach ( after the Ortiz fight) saying that mayweather is slow and very flat footed. Part of me thinks that its just Money throwing out a different style. I know against Mosley and Ortiz he was standing maybe more flat footed than his earlier fights such as Corrales, but I think its by choice. I personally liked his style of moving around more, but do you think its age or any signs of slowing down? Honestly to me the way that Money trains, I cant believe that he cant move around. Maybe he knows what style will be effective against certain opponents? I think it would be awesome if in his next fight Money just moved around a lot...confuse the hell out of the public and Roach of how he is going to fight. Hopefully you can ask Money and see what he says and I would like to get your thoughts too. Keep up the good work Big Ben!!!! - Tejas Doshi, Los Angeles, California
BT: What do I think? I think Freddie Roach says a lot of things that he doesn't really believe. I mean, this is the same Freddie Roach who was defending the innocence of Antonio Margarito, willing to go to bat for him in front of the California State Athletic Commission back in 2009 [CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO OF THAT INTERVIEW], only to turn around and proclaim his guilt and call for a lifetime banishment a year later when he became a suitable opponent for Pacquiao. Saying that Floyd Mayweather is slow and flat-footed is as ridiculous as saying Antonio Margarito floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee. It should be pretty obvious that Roach is just trying to downplay Mayweather's performance in hopes of convincing everyone that Pacquiao is that much better than him. At the same time, he's kind of shooting himself in the foot because if Mayweather is truly that slow and flat-footed, then why the hell do we all want to see him and Pacquiao fight? Everybody knows the saying...STYLES MAKE FIGHTS! All that we're seeing is Mayweather recognizing what he has in front of him and adjusting his style to fit a certain game plan. That's it! In both Shane Mosley and Victor Ortiz, he knew exactly what he was getting, and in both fights, he told everyone that would listen to him what he was going to do....come forward, walk them down, stand and fight! Guess what? He did exactly what he said he was going to do. Now, if he needed to, he would have adjusted accordingly and got back to moving around if the pressure warranted it. In fact, at times, he did switch it up with both guys, backing up to the ropes and looking to counter, but ultimately, he stuck to the original game plan because with Mosley and Ortiz, what you see is what you get, and he knew that he had two guys in front of him who were going to waste a lot of energy on ineffective punches that weren't going to land. If you look up the meaning of "damned if you, damned if you don't", there's got to be a big ol' picture of Mawyeather smiling right next to it. If he moves too much, he's a runner...if he doesn't move, he doesn't have the legs anymore. LOL. It's comedy. Anyway, I really wouldn't put too much stock into what Roach says these days as far as Mayweather is concerned. I think he knows exactly what he'd have to deal with. Put it this way, if they started training a little earlier for this third fight with Marquez, I guarantee you they'll be training A LOT earlier if they ever fight Mayweather.
Yo Ben, What the hell is Victor Conte's deal? He has the nerve to have doubts about Floyd and Floyd is the only one trying to take the test to have some for of blood and urine testing to ensure a fair fight. It may not be actually OST kuz its not 24/7 365 but at least he's been tested several times 8 weeks is something, it's not just nothing. He didn't say anything about PacROID not even opening his mouth about any form of testing. I personally think people say Floyds name just to get attention. It seem's like the most popular thing to do. - Khalif M. Moffett
BT: Honestly, I don't even blame Victor Conte for anything that he's said because, quite frankly, if certain people in the media weren't asking him the questions, then he wouldn't have the platform to answer them. Truth be told, I think people are getting a little too caught up in semantics. I mean, okay, so it's not exactly the same type of 365-days-a-year testing that's done in the Olympics. Fine! Then don't refer to it as "Olympic-style" testing anymore since it's not conducted in the exact same manner. The fact remains, Floyd Mayweather wants random blood and urine tests leading all the way up to the fight...key words being "RANDOM" and "BLOOD"! Seeing as how reluctant certain athletic commissions are to embrace change and except a more stringent testing policy, I really don't see how anyone can expect 365-days-a-year testing in the sport of boxing. Hell, Mayweather can't even get certain promoters, trainers and fighters to agree to 56 days (8 weeks) of random blood and urine testing, let alone 365 days, so I'm not really sure why so much attention is being placed on whether or not USADA is actually conducting "Olympic-style" testing for these fights. Like I said, there's certain people in the media who are just focusing on semantics, and my guess is that those people are just hoping to point their finger at Mayweather to say, "See, I told you he doesn't really care about cleaning up the sport. He just thinks Manny Pacquiao is on something." To that, I would simply say, "So what?" Who cares why he wants random blood and urine tests? I mean, really, what difference does it make? It's not going to change the fact that in order to make the fight, any fight for that matter, he wants those tests done, period! Anyway, the point is, if people quit putting Victor Conte in the spotlight, then he won't be opening his mouth as much. Besides, it's not like he doesn't have his own agenda either. Victor Conte has launched his own anti-doping task force called VADA (Voluntary Anti-Doping Agency), and he plans on providing "comprehensive drug testing to professional athletes who agreed to be tested voluntarily." Hmmmmmm. Isn't that pretty much what USADA does? If you ask me, Victor Conte has every reason, the main one being money, to crap on what's currently out there no.
Hey Ben, I love reading your articles and viewing access videos of Mayweather. Personally, it is refreshing when watching the vids of Mayweather how he is 100% real. I was just reading an article about the R&B artist Ray J doing a collaborative song with Victor Ortiz. I heard the song and it is truly Whack. I'm sorry and by no means I want to offend anybody, but the song is garbage. I thought him and Mayweather are close friends.
BT: LOL. I actually heard the song last week when TMZ leaked it. I think I even vaguely remember Victor Ortiz tweeting about it prior to the fight. Apparently, it's a track called "Baddest Girl" [CLICK HERE IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO IT] that mainly features Ray J's vocals, but Ortiz, or should I say "Mr. Ortiz", his alter-ego, supposedly has a little rap in it. According to Ray J, however, he's never done any type of collabo with "Mr. Ortiz". He called into Shade 45 last week to explain, "I don't know how the media even comes up with these crazy stories. We ain't never been in the studio together not one time." I'll take Ray J for his word and just assume that somebody somehow got a hold of the never-before-released track and remixed a version with Ortiz's rap in it. I can, however, confirm that Ray J and Ortiz, at some point, were cool and hung out. In fact, it was Floyd Mayweather himself who told me that he was first introduced to Victor Ortiz through his friend, Ray J. I can't remember exactly how the story went, but I believe Floyd said that he was at some event and Ray J came up and introduced him to Ortiz, who he said was starstruck and in awe. Now, like I said, I have no idea if the collabo actually did occur, but according to Ray J, it didn't. That being said, he definitely knows Ortiz, but he appears to be a lot tighter with Mayweather considering that he stopped by the Big Boy Mansion a couple of hours after the fight to congratulate Floyd while cracking on Ortiz.
Hi Ben, First time messaging you, I have been following your reports and interviews with Floyd for a while now (and i am a massive fan) and can i just say that i loved the after dark series, good job!!! Just wanted to ask your opinion on how Floyd feels about his haters and if he does take it to heart at all, because as we can see from the 24/7 series he is dedicated and hard working as his moto says, so do you think he does get frustrated when such big efforts and successes are questioned? And if so is he personally bothered about trying to win them over, or do you think that will only ever happen if he does fight and beat Manny Pacquiao? Also next time you see him can you ask him if he has any plans for fighting in the UK and if he has a new designed outfit for a potential Pacquiao fight since he fought Ortiz in the orange and black? Best Wishes, Karl Campbell, Liverpool, UK. P.S. Do you know how i can get one of the Mayweather "we make champions t-shirts?"
BT: I'm glad you enjoyed the videos, Karl. Hopefully we'll get to see a lot more in the near future. Honestly, I really don't think the haters get to him at all. I think he gave up caring about that a long, long, LONG time ago. Now, I'm not going to say it doesn't irk him just a tad bit that he doesn't get the respect he deserves. I mean, no matter how much anyone might say that doesn't bother them, I think it definitely strikes a nerve, no matter how small it may be, deep down someplace. Is he losing any sleep over it? No! Does it weigh on him at all? Absolutely not! Is he thinking about it 24/7? Of course not! At the end of the day, he steps into the ring, takes cares of his business, and collects his paycheck! He's an extremely rich man with plenty of toys and a lot of free time, so there are a lot better things to do than to be sitting around thinking about all the haters out there. That being said, it's my opinion that everyone likes to be recognized in one way, shape, or form for doing what they do best. Anytime you feel like you're the best at something, but you're not getting the recognition as such, that's got to irk you just a tad bit...at least, I know it would irk me. Then again, I don't know what it's like to be a multi-millionaire. Perhaps if I had that kind of money, I might not really care at all either. LOL. Like I said though, I truly believe he could care less. Whether they love him or hate him, the only thing that really matters is that they tune in. For the record, if he does get an opportunity to beat Pacquiao, I still don't think he'll get the credit he deserves. There will always be a "next" opponent, so if he made it look easy against Pacquiao, not only will there be excuses about Pacquiao being too small or too faded or not focused, but then fans will be clamoring for him to move up to 160 to fight Sergio Martinez. If there's one thing I've learned in this business, it's that fans are NEVER satisfied. And I don't know if I'd hold my breath about him fighting in the UK. I think there's a strong possibility that he may hold an open workout in the UK, especially if Amir Khan is in his future, however, I don't see him fighting anywhere other than the Money Green building (MGM Grand) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Also, I'm fresh out of shirts myself, save for a couple of mediums floating around here somewhere, however you can purchase them at his store: http://floydmayweather.spreadshirt.com
All I wanted to say is I appreciate the way you break down fights with that being said I wish ppl would stop the disrespect of fighters like Mayweather 42-0 no draw no nothing & definitely no throwing in the towel love him or hate men lie women lie numbers don't.. Keep up the good work homey & tell them cats hating is like the aids virus it kills you slowly. - Brian Slaughter
BT: Thanks for the props and support, Brian. Indeed, numbers don't lie, and whether they love him or hate him, for some reason, they all still tune in, so he must be doing something right. LOL. Thanks again.
Ben, I was wondering (since it is the biggest conversation around the water cooler) has Manny Pacquiao been using any agencies for testing in his fights; and how big is this anti-doping push from fighters outside of mayweather. I saw some stuff about other fighters going to other sources for testing as apart of their fight contracts. Thanks- Derrell Ellis
BT: Derrell, Manny Pacquiao does not use any other outside agencies for testing purposes. In fact, roughly a week ago, in a video interview on Manny Pacquiao's offical website, Alex Ariza said, "We'll do whatever the commission says, whatever the sanctioning body says, those are the tests that we're going to take. To take a test outside just to fight Floyd? We don't need to. He's [Pacquiao] the best fighter in the world. They need to do what Manny says. We don't need to do what Mayweather says." I think that pretty much sums up their stance on outside testing, regardless of whether or not Manny Pacquiao and Bob Arum says "there are no issues" pertaining to random blood and urine tests. There's actually been an increase in the number of fighters that have suggested or requested additional testing. Andre Ward, Carl Froch, Jean Pascal, Zab Judah and Andre Berto have all mentioned it and done some research on the possibility of implementing it, however, due to the cost, as far as I know, Floyd Mayweather is still the only one who has added it to his fights. It should be noted that promoters Lou DiBella and Gary Shaw also think that stricter testing should be in place for championship bouts.
I think your seeing something that isnt there regarding the hbo crew. We all know merchant likes a blood and guts war. but he did nothing wrong in that interview. It was a bit controversial regardless of what "fighters" think if the buying public thinks it is. merchant was simply trying to get MW of the script. And as far as the "aircraft carrier" remark? commenting on the build of a fighter you find negative? you really would like kellerman over merchant? WOW - jim
BT: Jim, I think you're not bothering to open your eyes. First and foremost, whenever Jim Lampley calls a fight, he's so focused on one fighter that he doesn't even see half the punches being thrown and sometimes makes up punches out of thin air. That's not even an exaggeration. He literally needs to get his eyes checked because it seems like it's getting worse and worse. As for Merchant, what he did wrong was putting his hand in Floyd's face, trying to cut him off while he was thanking the fans for buying tickets and the pay-per-view. That was basically the equivalent of telling him, "Shut the fuck up, Floyd. Nobody cares about that shit. I got more important stuff to talk about than to hear you give thanks." Then he proceeds to paint the picture of Floyd taking advantage of an inexperienced kid who made a mistake without once even asking him what went through his mind when he himself was intentionally headbutted. Merchant walked into that ring with an agenda, and that agenda had nothing to do with getting Floyd's side of the story. I'm sorry, but Larry Merchant's old grumpy ass needs to go. With all the sarcasm he tries to spit in his dumb ass hyperboles, I'm not even sure if he likes boxing anymore. It's time to put Groucho out to pasture. Actually, it's well past that time...that time came and went about 50 years ago. Now, should Max Kellerman be the one to replace him? I don't know about that...nor did I ever say that...but I do think boxing should actually cater more to their demographic, and I just don't think 60-80 year olds are the target audience. As for the "aircraft carrier" remark...I'm sorry, but, yes, definitely homo on that one. That was about as homo as his "Bang! Bang! BANG!" commentary during Pacquiao vs. Clottey.
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