Forget about all the rumors you may have heard about a potential union between a certain undefeated multi-division champion and a legendary Hall of Fame promoter. Without a doubt, there's no way whatsoever that Floyd Mayweather will sign with Don King! Despite all the talk of a 4-fight, $100,000,000 contract, Mayweather is no closer to becoming a Don King fighter than fans were at getting a mega-fight between Mayweather and Pacquiao on November 13. In other words, it ain't happening.
Last weekend, Mayweather was spotted in St. Louis, attending Don King's "Gateway to Greatness" card and sitting ringside next to the Hall of Fame promoter during Devon Alexander's successful title defense against Andriy Kotelnik. The appearance added more fuel to the rumor that Mayweather might be signing with King. In fact, it was boxing scribe and former Don King publicist Michael Marley who spearheaded the rumor, stating that a "solid" source close to the promoter informed him that Mayweather had just signed a 4-fight, $100,000,000 contract with King. From there, the story really began to pick up steam, with writers from here to Timbucktu believing and reporting on the rumor. It even prompted Manny Pacquiao to release a statement supporting the union in hopes of a chance to still face Mayweather in November.
Well, let me be the first to tell you that Michael Marley is wrong, there is no 4-fight, $100,000,000 contract and Floyd Mayweather will not be the newest addition to Don King Productions. This isn't the first time that Marley has given credence to a totally inaccurate rumor. After all, this is the same Michael Marley who stuck by his guns and swore up and down that the Mayweather vs. Pacquiao mega-fight was a done deal for November 13 in Las Vegas, only to be blindsided himself when he discovered that the information that promoter Bob Arum was feeding him was egregiously inaccurate. Never mind the fact that this rumor originated from a former publicist whose primary job was to spin something out of nothing, one need only read between the lines to realize that a union between King and Mayweather is about as legitimate as a Gale Van Hoy scorecard.
In the week leading up to last weekend's card, Don King Productions cleverly sent out a press release announcing that Floyd Mayweather, Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson would all be in attendance. Although Tyson was a no-show, both Mayweather and Holyfield kept up their end of the bargain, as both men were shown sitting ringside during the HBO broadcast. Due to Mayweather's presence, however, the fact that the only 5-time heavyweight champion was there has seemingly gone unnoticed by many fans and writers alike. Oh, but not by this astute writer. Although there's been no recent rumors about Holyfield signing with King, or a potential third bout with Mike Tyson, it says here that the former undisputed heavyweight champion was in St. Louis for the exact same reason that Mayweather was there. Both fighters, as well as Tyson if he would have showed up, were likely flown in by King and offered an appearance fee to lend some star-studded appeal to a card that lacked any real fanfare, pomp or pageantry.
Oh, don't get me wrong, I have no doubt that there were several conversations about all things Pacquiao, Schaefer and Arum. But as Ross Greenburg and Leonard Ellerbe have kindly taught us, there's a big difference between conversations and negotiations. If anyone was hoping for Don King to come to the rescue, it's time to give up that dream and get back to reality. Money Mayweather is his own boss. Although King would love the opportunity to get his hands on him, it's not going to happen so long as Mayweather can continue to average $25 million a fight on his own, which ironically he's been doing ever since he left Bob Arum.