http://www.sherdog.com/news/news.asp?n_id=10499

Quote :

"Saturday, December 22, 2007 by Sherdog.com Staff Floyd Mayweather Jr. is discussing a deal with billionaire Mark Cuban that could put the best boxer on the planet in a mixed martial arts bout. If an agreement is reached, Mayweather would join HDNet Fights, Cuban's fledgling MMA promotional arm, ESPN reported Friday. "Floyd is considering fighting with HDNet Fights," Cuban told ESPN.com. "We are going to let him visit some gyms to talk to some folks about what it would take to learn. He knows it won't be easy. But he is getting involved with MMA and HDNet Fights one way or another. He is pumped about it. He wants to go on to the next big thing. Floyd is a brilliant marketer. He follows the money." The undefeated Mayweather, a five-division world champion regarded as one of the purest pugilists in boxing history, stopped English challenger Ricky Hatton on Dec. 8 to retain his welterweight title. Cuban and Mayweather, who struck up a friendship during the taping of ABC's "Dancing with the Stars," met Thursday in Las Vegas to discuss a possible role for the boxer with HDNet Fights. According to ESPN.com, Leonard Ellerbe, a close Mayweather associate, said a move from the sweet science to MMA is something that seriously interests the boxer. "When Floyd makes his move, obviously it's going to be a mega event," Ellerbe told ESPN. "We don't have a timetable. Floyd is taking some time off, but Floyd understands what is involved. You have to take time to go out and understand what you're getting involved in, and he's ready to do that." Mayweather, 30, was part of two events in 2007 that generated 3.25 million pay-per-view buys and $200 million in revenue. A defeat of Oscar de la Hoya in May broke PPV records with 2.4 million subscriptions. In all, Mayweather made $50 million for his bouts with de la Hoya and Hatton. "If I said there's a guaranteed $30 million payday, Floyd would be lacing them up," Cuban told ESPN.com. "If not, I could see him working to train and develop and invest in MMA fighters, knowing the upside. He can teach them how to be a better boxer and add to their other skills." Should he decide to compete in MMA, Mayweather would immediately become the best boxer to test himself in that arena. Others such as Francois Botha (Pictures), Art Jimmerson, Melton Bowen and James Warring fared poorly in their respective MMA efforts. Mayweather would likely compete in MMA's 145-pound featherweight division, which is currently dominated by WEC champion Urijah Faber (Pictures)."

thatd be big if he does decide to g that route, at least hes putting his money where is mouth is

12/22/2007 4:09:12 PM

rip boxing.

12/22/2007 4:27:15 PM

boxing died long ago

12/22/2007 6:26:07 PM

and floyd is next if he goes through with it

12/23/2007 1:59:56 AM

haha for real

12/23/2007 2:00:26 AM

you will lose

12/26/2007 2:02:48 AM

^saw that scene today

12/26/2007 3:02:31 AM

What's a "kick?"

12/26/2007 3:31:35 AM

If he dies, he dies.

12/26/2007 9:31:14 AM

Urijah Faber is one of the nastiest fighters i have ever seen
i really dont think Floyd would last with him if thats who he had to fight
i would hope that Floyd would get his feet wet first w/ some lesser skilled opponents

12/26/2007 12:15:39 PM

I think elite boxers are probably more talented and more athletic than elite MMA fighters.

But he will still get killed if he has never done it before.

12/26/2007 1:15:52 PM

i dont see how you could say that a boxer (or any participant in a singular art) who uses one dimension is more athletic than an athlete that uses a plethora of offenses and defenses


but i will agree on the talented part, only if you mean in one skill but then again when you have to train all sorts of different arts in all sorts of different situations, trying to learn art PERFECTLY would be to your detriment, not considering keeping that skill world class

all i have to say is if Floyd goes through with it i hope he doesnt get discouraged after one loss or if he wins by a KO i hope he doesnt neglect everything else

now that ive trained a tiny bit, beign ready for ANYTHING is fuckin hard...ive heard floyd used to wrestle though

[Edited on December 26, 2007 at 3:34 PM. Reason : d]

12/26/2007 3:33:28 PM

Hes gonna get killed on the ground,
i saw an awsome mui thai fighter get submitted by a worthless submission artist
so i dont think mayweather has a chance with a grappler

12/26/2007 3:53:32 PM

if you guys havent had a Chance to watch Faber fight, he fights in the WEC on Versus.

12/27/2007 10:25:46 AM

I'm pretty sure Mayweather would beat literally anyone he stepped in the ring with

As long as he stayed on his feet

12/27/2007 10:27:29 AM

not really, theyd kick the shit out of his legs

12/27/2007 1:00:00 PM

Quote :

"I'm pretty sure Mayweather would beat literally anyone he stepped in the ring with As long as he stayed on his feet"

Maybe, but what kind of retard mma fighter would stay on his feet vs. Mayweather?

12/27/2007 3:34:29 PM

some overconfident MMA fighter who thinks he can box

I would like to see somebody like Tyson fight in MMA, I think he could do alright...he's crazy enough

12/27/2007 3:39:22 PM

^i really don't see anyone being so overconfident that they try to out-box a world champion boxer, but whatever

12/27/2007 3:45:19 PM

you dont also think mayweather would do all that he could to stay on his own feet and try to land a big shot? that would have to be his strategy

12/27/2007 3:46:31 PM

im telling you that wont even come close to working if he commits to a big strike hes gonna

1) break his damn hand if it even lands
2) hes gonna get taken down for using his whole body to throw a punch
3) hes gonna quit after one or 2 leg kicks

he cant come with the same stuff he uses for boxing, his head will get tore up if he defends the same...its a definite learning curve

unless they give him a can mma fighter that only knows how to box (which is most likely) hell they might even handpick one of you guys to fight him, just so he can go back to the boxing world and say "MAN boxing PWNS mma!!"

Quote :

"I would like to see somebody like Tyson fight in MMA, I think he could do alright...he's crazy enough"

Tyson had practically signed on the dotted line to fight in PRIDE, but for whatever reason that deal fell through (bout 2 years ago) but that dude will do anything for money nowadays

[Edited on December 27, 2007 at 4:05 PM. Reason : c]

12/27/2007 4:04:11 PM

I'd just be curious to see how a truly skilled boxer like Mayweather would do in MMA...I think he's more technically skilled in boxing than any of the other MMA fighters are IN BOXING, and in most of their individual disciplines, but as soon as he goes down he's fucked

I think I remember Tyson talking shit from the crowd at some Pride fight where that big ass black dude had just won and they were supposed to fight...cant remember his name

12/27/2007 4:09:50 PM

bob sapp

[Edited on December 27, 2007 at 4:12 PM. Reason : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3fWeORSvJQ]

12/27/2007 4:11:51 PM

yeah thats him and ^thats the clip i'm talking about

it was a K1 fight that Tyson was at

I'd like to see Kimbo Slice up in MMA...that dude is a champ

12/27/2007 4:14:09 PM

Kimbo is already competing in MMA

he beat Ray mercer in an exhibition fight in a tiny organization by guillotine choke (doesnt count towards a professional record)

hes professionally 1-0 but he fought what turned out to be a complete can in the EliteXC (a mid-major org...definite big time), which was unfortunate

Kimbo came out looking good in his movements and stuff, he hits the guy, it kinda grazes the dude on the shouler...than a glancing uppercut and the dude is tappin out on his way to the ground

alotta people screamed that the fight was either a work or that someone paid the opponent to lose..but honestly if that were true thats a pathetic way to do it. to me the guy looked afraid of Kimbo in the staredown, kimbo his huge and ripped to shit and still has the beard

he trains under Bas Rutten and is serious about an MMA career so hes starting where everyone else tends to start

he was supposed to fight Tank Abbott in the same org that he fought Ray Mercer, but that organization basically folded and EliteXC bought Kimbo's contract

12/27/2007 5:00:13 PM

mayweather will break his hands if he does decide to do this

i'm calling it now

12/27/2007 5:07:47 PM

^^right on...i've seen some of kimbo's fights on youtube where it appears some random swoll dude challenges him to a fight, and to my knowledge i think only one person even competed with kimbo...he is a bad dude

12/27/2007 5:09:01 PM

plus if he knocks someone down, what is he going to do? jump right into their guard and get submitted once the opponent recovers?

will he be able to throw effective strikes inside the guard when he is fighting off his opponents hands and when the opponent has control of his hips...when he cant use his legs to aid in the power of his punches?

will he know how to balance his weight and keep a solid enough base to not get swept and mounted?

12/27/2007 5:11:31 PM

Looks like Floyd found a way to duck Miguel Cotto and Paul Williams without looking like a pussy. Can't blame him though. Even if he taps out after two minutes his boxing legacy won't be hurt. $30 million seems well worth that kind of risk. I just wonder if he will actually go through with it.

12/27/2007 6:44:41 PM

Quote :

"you dont also think mayweather would do all that he could to stay on his own feet and try to land a big shot? that would have to be his strategy"

yeah he would try, but i don't think he could stay up against any legitimate pro mma fighter that wanted to take him to the ground.

12/27/2007 11:33:58 PM

Not going to be happening any time soon. Floyd to fight De La Hoya again.

Quote :

"The richest fight in boxing history is on the verge of getting a sequel. Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Oscar De La Hoya, who shattered box office records when they met last spring, are close to finishing a deal for a rematch, Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer told ESPN.com Wednesday. "We are still discussing things but we have almost finalized it," said Schaefer, who heads De La Hoya's promotional company. "I think an announcement will be forthcoming." Schaefer said the fight would be Sept. 13 or Sept. 20 on HBO pay-per-view. He said the site for Mayweather-De La Hoya II has not been settled but he is holding the September dates at the 27,000-seat Home Depot Center, the outdoor home to the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer. He said other venues are also interested, including the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. A source also told ESPN.com Wednesday night that Dodger Stadium was interested in hosting the fight after L.A. native De La Hoya suggested he'd like to fight there before retiring. Mayweather won a split decision to take De La Hoya's junior middleweight belt when they met May 5 at the MGM Grand. The match between boxing's No. 1 fighter, Mayweather, and its greatest attraction, De La Hoya, was a success and, ultimately, a rematch was hard to pass up. "Floyd is agreeable to do the fight and so is Oscar," Schaefer said. "Now it's just me working through everything." Although De La Hoya has said he planned to return to the welterweight division and Mayweather is the welterweight world champion, Schaefer said the weight for a rematch hadn't been determined. He said it could be at a catch weight somewhere between the 147-pound welterweight division and 154-pound junior middleweight class. "It's something we are discussing," he said. Backed by five-months of promotion, which included an 11-city cross-country tour and HBO's reality series "De La Hoya/Mayweather 24/7," the first fight broke boxing box office records including total gross ($165 million); pay-per-view subscriptions (2.4 million); pay-per-view gross ($134.4 million) and live gate ($18,419,200). Although the fight was panned by many for a lack of action and the rematch probably won't approach the numbers of the original, it still figures to do well. De La Hoya had planned to return to the ring May 3, but didn't have an opponent. The prospect of facing British star Ricky Hatton, his first choice, evaporated when Mayweather returned to welterweight and knocked Hatton out in the 10th round on Dec. 8. Welterweight titleholder Miguel Cotto was a darkhorse candidate to fight De La Hoya. Cotto promoter Bob Arum acknowledged it was unlikely. He spent Wednesday in New York meeting with HBO executives about an alternative plan for Cotto, who probably will fight in April, possibly against first-season "Contender" star Alfonso Gomez. Hatton's lopsided defeat left Mayweather as De La Hoya's most lucrative opponent. But instead of facing him on Cinco De Mayo weekend, the rematch will move to the fall because Mayweather is taking a break after a grueling 2007 inside and out of the ring. Mayweather's fights with De La Hoya and Hatton were the biggest of the year and the promotions were exhausting. He also found mainstream recognition during his fall run on the popular reality series "Dancing with the Stars." A rematch with De La Hoya (38-5, 30 KOs) would delay Mayweather (39-0, 25 KOs) jumping to mixed martial arts, which he has discussed with "Dancing with the Stars" pal and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, who also owns his own MMA promotional company. Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather's adviser and close friend, was unavailable for comment. With De La Hoya moving off May 3, it is possible that his friend and Golden Boy Promotions partner Shane Mosley could fight on the date instead."

1/20/2008 9:15:32 AM

Mayweather will end up breaking his hands just trying to train for a big fight. He's always had problems with them.

1/20/2008 11:19:24 AM

^I think you are reading too far into that. Sugar Ray Leonard said he was going to retire after he won a gold medal in the olympics in 1976 because his hands could not take it. He continued to box off and on until 1997. I'm not saying Mayweather's hands are not bothering him, but there is no reason to dismiss him like you did. He has dealt with the problem for many years without ever losing or pulling out of a fight. It's a very common problem for boxers.

1/20/2008 5:08:14 PM

i have no interest in seeing mayweather fight de la hoya again

first fight fucking sucked

1/20/2008 5:39:35 PM

^^its a little different when youre swingin those hands with 4oz gloves on and then having to grip and grasp and block strikes and fight off hands with those damaged hands

1/20/2008 10:18:10 PM

^exactly. There's a huge difference between having your hands taped into a solid shape surrounded with padded leather and with having your hands open so that you can grab and throw punches intermittently. Mayweather already has a problem with fragile hands even when he tapes them up and protects then during sparring matches. He'll never make it through a MMA bout without breaking a knuckle the first time he punches into the top of someone's head.

1/20/2008 10:53:56 PM

He won't make it through a real MMA match anyway, broken hand or not.

1/20/2008 11:10:03 PM

MMA is the white trash of fighting sports

1/21/2008 2:22:28 AM

i don't know how boxing got this reputation as a wimpy sport...

1/21/2008 2:24:23 AM

^^^^I thought you were talking about training for a boxing match.

1/21/2008 9:39:09 AM