Boxing needs Floyd Mayweather Jr. more than he needs boxing

By Ray Brewer (contact)

Thursday, Sept. 10, 2015 | 2 a.m.

Nobody believes, probably not even Floyd Mayweather Jr. himself, that Saturday night will be his last fight.

Mayweather’s claim he will retire after facing Andre Berto Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena and fulfilling a six-fight contract with Showtime feels more like a threat than a promise.

It’s just nobody feels threatened. Some couldn't care less if Mayweather fights again, labeling him as a boring boxer or becoming disenchanted because he is fighting Berto Saturday and not someone with a better pedigree.

Berto has lost three of his last six fights, meaning his $3 million purse is comparable to hitting the lottery. He should be fighting on top of the parking garage at Sam’s Town and not in the sport’s best venue at the MGM.

But this fight isn’t about Berto. It’s about Mayweather and his enormous ego, which let’s be honest: You’d have a high opinion of yourself, too, if you were the best in the world at your craft.

It’s about his undefeated record, which when he stops Berto will match Rocky Marciano at 49-0, and his place as one of the sport’s greats.

That’s why a farewell fight against Berto won’t be his last. Derek Jeter didn’t have his last at bat in Triple-A and Peyton Manning’s football career won’t wind down in the Canadian Football League.

Mayweather will fight again. He wants to be the first fight at the new Las Vegas Arena, the MGM-AEG project behind Monte Carlo and scheduled to open in the spring. The MGM wants him, not some other fighter who doesn’t move the radar, as its headliner.

But first we have to beg.

Mayweather wants us to tell him how much we love and appreciate his brilliance, and how the sport would be lost without him. Mayweather wants us to pony up to watch him perform.

And, unlike his critics, I’m OK with that. I’d be hard-pressed to name a fight not involving Mayweather I’d like to see. There’s only a handful of fighters who grab my attention.

“I’ve done a lot for this sport. Everyone used to be focused on heavyweights,” Mayweather said Tuesday. “My ultimate goal was to have everyone focus at whatever weight class I was, in my weight class. I’ve always been able to make noise at whatever weight class I was in.”

But what happens if he does step away? Who would take his place as boxing’s biggest draw — something, judging by the 3,000 tickets remaining for Saturday fight, is a disputable claim.

Boxing needs Mayweather more than Mayweather needs boxing. Without him headlining cards on the big September and May fight weekends, Las Vegas won’t have the same buzz. The city won’t be as profitable, with everyone from taxi drivers to food servers not enjoying a weekend of excessive tips. Sure, diehard fight fans will still follow the sport and still come to Las Vegas for fight night.

But the average fan might be gone. And gone for good. A younger generation of fight fan already prefers mixed martial arts, partially because fighters such as Mayweather rarely win by knockout and also because the heavyweight division is non-existent.

“My ultimate goal is that we can find another Floyd Mayweather,” he said. “When I turned professional I was a teenager and the MGM was Mike Tyson’s building. I’m just blessed and I feel like I was dealt a royal flush.”

Ray Brewer can be reached at 702-990-2662 or [email protected]. Follow Ray on Twitter at twitter.com/raybrewer21