"Oscar De La Hoya don't like me at all. He truly dislikes me and I don't care too much for him. I don't like him at all either. It's a real beef," stated boxing's pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr., who was on hand at the ESPN studios to discuss his anticipated rematch with Oscar De La Hoya as well as his upcoming clash this Sunday with Big Show at Wrestlemania XXVI. Check out what else he had to say.
Regarding his decision to participate in Wrestlemania...
"It was just something great to get outside the box."
"They're the best promotion vehicle that I've known ever."
"I've always been a fan of wrestling so now I'm in wrestling and I love it."
"It's a no-holds barred match. It's the biggest vs. the best."
"It's going to be a pay-per-view extravanganza. WWE is so entertaining. I'm very, very entertaining. When you bring the two together, you just get an explosion."
Regarding his matchup with Big Show...
"I don't know what he's going to do and he don't know what I'm going to do. win, lose or draw, this is going to be a very, very interesting matchup. I have to stay away from this guy as much as i possibly can stay away from him. I have to try to tire this guy out if I can."
"I've been working with different wrestling coaches. Of course, I've been working with my boxing coach, which is Roger Mayweather. He's still my trainer. He's here to stay. For all those that's out there listening, Roger Mayweather is the best trainer in the world, hands down!"
Regarding the controversy with Roger training Steve Forbes...
"Well, Floyd Mayweather is always surrounded with controversy. That's how my career has been, sort of like a see saw; up and down. Roger Mayweather, he's still my trainer. I've been out the coutnry a lot. I've been doing a lot of wrestling, but I've been out the coutnry a lot touring and doing different things. I had got a note to Roger before. I let him know that, I don't want you basically...it's not that I don't want him working with Steve Forbes, it's just for this fight against Oscar De La Hoya because it can cost me millions. I look forward to fighting Oscar De La Hoya some time in September. Steve Forbes and Oscar De La Hoya is fighting in May. May the best man win, but I wish Oscar De La Hoya rise to the occassion, which I truly believe he can do, because that's millions for me. My uncle, he got the remedy to beat Oscar and I don't want my uncle Roger giving the remedy away."
Regarding the rematch with Oscar De La Hoya in September...
"Now everything is on Mayweather Promotion's terms. We get to get the gloves where we can be comfortable. Last time, the gloves that he gave me were pillows basically and the gloves that he had, I don't what gloves he had, but the gloves that he gave me was pillows. He talk about he want some action, well give me the right gloves and you gonna get action. This year, me and Oscar De La Hoya will face each other in Septemeber and that's only one fight, but i have so many different avenues and so many different things I'm doing outside of boxing, I will make 170 million dollars this year without an endorsement deal."
Regarding whether or not he got the respect he feels he deserves from De La Hoya...
"I'm going to be honest, you know I come clean. I keep everything clean...I'm like...I'm fair, but I'm firm. Oscar De La Hoya don't like me at all. He truly dislikes me and I don't care too much for him. I don't like him at all either. It's a real beef. This goes back to...at first, when he was with Top Rank, I liked the guy...one day you hear him say he want to fight like Floyd Mayewather and I hate this kid and when this kid get in the biggest fight of his life, he will freeze. He must realize that's the biggest fight of his life also. I hold the record for pay-per-view. If he was victorious May 5th last year, then we could say that he holds the record, but no, I hold the record. 24/7 was my idea, just like we done 24/7 with the Hatton fight, and I always rise to the occassion in the biggest fights. When I faced Oscar De La Hoya, I had my C game on and I beat him with my C game so that shows you what level he's on."
"24/7 is so amazing, but they will never give me the props that I truly deserve in the sport of boxing. I've been a world champoin a decade. Been to five different weight classes; six-time world champion in five different weight classes and they keep naming different fighters, 'Floyd you should fight this fighter. Floyd you should fight that fighter.' When I'm ready! All roads lead to Floyd Mayweather. Mayweather Promotions is the past, the present and the future of sports entertainment.
"I'm outside box. When you look at Oscar De La Hoya, guess what you say...'he's just a fighter,' but when you look at Floyd Mayewather, you say, "now that kid's an etnertainer,' and that's what the people want. People want entertainment."
Closing thoughts...
"You know Money Mayweather make the impossible, possible."
"I'm controversy. I'm just very, very controversy. You'll either get two ways. Either you love me or you hate me, but God love. Look where I'm at."
"1.4 million buys last year, Wrestlemania with Donald Trump. This year, Floyd Money Maywether will break the record."