"Well, until you beat the guy, Pacquiao's the best and that's the thing, Floyd hasn't done that yet. When Floyd left, he became the best because Floyd left, but now that Floyd is back, I guess they have to get it on to see who is the best...I don't think he needs to fight him immediately. That guys is good! I think he'll give Floyd trouble. He's got fast hands too, he's left-handed and he's got a lot more speed than pretty much all the guys that Floyd has fought," stated four-time heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield as he shared his thoughts on who he considers to be the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. Check out what else he had to say about Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather Jr., fighting at catchweights and much more.
BT: Yeah, that's true, I think the last guy who really has been taking people out is Manny Pacquiao.
EH: That's right, he's taking people out, which everybody was kind of surprised because ain't nobody think he was going to do that to them guys; not going up to a heavier weight. But he was able to do it.
BT: And do it impressively, which is entertaining, like you said. That's what people want to see and that's why a lot of people consider him the best fighter on the planet right now, although I think Floyd Mayweather would probably have some choice words about that.
EH: Well, until you beat the guy, Pacquiao's the best and that's the thing, Floyd hasn't done that yet. When Floyd left, he became the best because Floyd left, but now that Floyd is back, I guess they have to get it on to see who is the best.
BT: Have you been keeping up with everything that's been going on with Floyd, with the rib injury and him postponing the fight and all that stuff? Do you think he should have came back and fought Manny Pacquiao immediately?
EH: Eh, I don't think that would have been smart. I don't think he needs to fight him immediately. That guys is good! I think he'll give Floyd trouble. He's got fast hands too, he's left-handed and he's got a lot more speed than pretty much all the guys that Floyd has fought.
BT: Yeah, that's a dangerous fight for Floyd. Honestly, I think the Marquez fightÂ…I don't know if they're still going to fight, but Marquez isn't a pushover either. I don't know if Floyd is considering him a tune-up, but that's a tough fight.
EH: Yeah, it is. I think so too. I think Floyd just actually kind of gave him a little bit more edge because when you disrespect somebody, you make the person fight harder. It don't go the other way. Especially the Mexican fighters. I ain't never seen nobody get in their face and then make them fight. They ain't going to quit. If they were thinking about quiting, they ain't about to quit now. He tried to embarrass him. They don't like that; they fight harder. They'd rather die than lose now so ain't no sense in giving somebody a reason to fight harder.
BT: For most of your career at heavyweight, you were usually considered the smaller guy when you were fighting a lot of those big guys. What do you think about a lot of these guys wanting to fight at catchweights? Like Manny Pacquiao, I guess he wants to fight Cotto at 144 instead of 147. Do you think that's kind of a cop out to make him suck down in weight if he wants to get Cotto's welterweight title?
EH: Well, I think it's kind of his job to get the fight to a position where it's kind of even. Of course, these guys, naturally, they're a lot bigger than Pacquiao so if he's able to get these guys to come down and meet him at a weight; for them to work that hard to make the weight, then I think it is to his advantage and that's the reason why he do it.
BT: You've fought guys that weighed 20 pounds more than you, of course it was at heavyweight though. How much weight actually makes a difference as far as the fight is concerned?
EH: At a certain weight, both of you hit hard and it comes down to skills; who's gonna hit who the most. But at a physical standpoint, a 5-pound and 10-pound difference is a major, major situation. When you a heavyweight, it's whoever is gonna land that punch first, but it's gonna come down to skill. The person who's skilled is going to hit you more so they eventually going to knock you out too. When you both about about a 5 or 10-pound difference and you're a middleweight, the guy is just as quick. The one thing about me fighting the bigger guy at heavyweight is that I'm faster than them. If you're just a 10-pound difference in the lower weights, the speed is just about the same. If there ain't no difference in speed, then that person is hitting a lot harder and a lot stronger, how can you win? You have to be able to take that much force so it is a little different. That's why they made weight divisions because they knew it would be a big difference.
BT: Marquez's last fight was at lightweight and Floyd's last fight was at welterweight. Then again, Marquez just fought Pacquiao last year and a lot of people think he may have won that fight. Do you think Floyd is going to be way too big for him or is Floyd just one of those smaller welterweights so the size won't matter?
EH: Well, Marquez is moving up so Floyd will probably be the stronger guy, but the difference is he won't be the quickest. He may have the faster hands, but people that come from a lighter weight are a little bit quicker and they throw a little bit more punches so they tend to offset the other guy that's stronger. Floyd ain't used to being the biggest guy because Floyd is very technical and sound. He don't throw a lot of punches, but he moves a lot and he throws the punches when he needs to throw them. They're accurate and all that, but when he fights a guy who's smaller and who can slip some of those punches and not just absorb a lot of those punches, then it'll be a different.
BT: Oscar De La Hoya retired. He said he's done. Do you belive him? Do you think he's done or is he going to fight again?
EH: I think he's done. He really don't got no reason to fight. He realized he bit off more than he could chew when he fought Pacquiao. He embarrassed himself one time and just realized, "why I am still doing this thing." So he's done.
BT: If you lose your last fight, is it easier to walk away or is it more difficult to go out on a loss as opposed to a win.
EH: With me it would be more difficult because the fact is I'm a winner. My whole thing is that I feel I gotta win with a championship, not just another fight. I can't just get anybody in there for me to beat them up just to say I won. I'm not like that. I seriously want to end as a champion.
BT: Well as far as I'm concerned, you are one of the champions. That whole Valuev situation still blows my mind. I've kept you long enough Champ. I really appreciate it. Is there anything else you want to say in closing?
EH: No, that's pretty much all I got. I'll talk to you soon. Take care Ben.
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