“He’s (Mayweather) Afraid To Lose” - Bob Arum

In the latest boxing news, World Boxing Council welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. has recently stated that he plans on competing in the MMA, and will perhaps be signing on with his billionaire friend, Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks basketball team and HFNet Fights, a MMA promotional company.

If everything goes according to plans, Mayweather, 30, will be soon participating in the MMA, although it’s unknown how long that he would compete. The move appears to be a very risky move on Mayweather’s part because should he lose to someone, he could potentially be facing a great deal of humiliation from the boxing public.

The move to the MMA appears especially confusing because Mayweather would seemingly be much better off taking on Miguel Cotto, the World Boxing Association welterweight champion, whom is one of the biggest rising stars in the boxing world. The bout would perhaps even approach Mayweather’s mega bout with Oscar De La Hoya or Ricky Hatton in terms of PPV sales.

However, Mayweather recently said that he has no plans on fighting Cotto, and that it wouldn’t be a good financial move for him to take the bout. To some, particularly Cotto’s promoter, Bob Arum, this appears to be a move by Mayweather to avoid taking a serious threat and perhaps losing Cotto. “He’s afraid to lose,“ Arum recently said to the Arizona Republic.

Indeed, the move to MMA by Mayweather appears to be a tactic to hold off the inevitable, as he seems to be avoiding having to face the tough welterweights in the division like Cotto, Paul Williams, Kermit Cintron and Antonio Margarito. By fighting in a completely different sport, Mayweather can say that he’s doing other things, but it’s not something that will gain him much in the long run, because sooner or later, he’ll likely come back to boxing, and Cotto and the other tough welterweights, will be waiting for him. Depending on how long Mayweather chooses to compete in MMA, he’ll only be older, slower, and more likely to lose to the young welterweight stars.