Floyd Mayweather hints he will end retirement in 2020
Undefeated boxing star Floyd Mayweather took to social media Thursday night to announce he is coming out of retirement in 2020.
The surprise revelation came hours after Reuters released an interview in which the Las Vegan said he was officially done with the “brutal sport” of boxing.
Mayweather attended Wednesday’s NBA game between the Clippers and Boston Celtics in Los Angeles with UFC president Dana White.
The two previously worked to co-promote a bout between Mayweather and UFC star Conor McGregor, which lured Mayweather out of retirement in 2017.
“(Dana White) and I working together again to bring the world another spectacular event in 2020,” Mayweather posted Thursday night with hashtags for UFC, MMA, boxing and Mayweather Promotions.
Less than an hour later, Mayweather followed with a more direct “Coming out of retirement in 2020.”
It’s unclear what he meant by the post, but a return to the ring for a competitive boxing match seems unlikely based on his statements in the Reuters interview.
“I’ve got calls to get back into the ring, but my health is my wealth,” Mayweather said. “Boxing is a very, very brutal sport. In the last few years, a lot of fighters have died inside that squared circle.”
The 42-year-old improved his record to 50-0 with a win over McGregor, who was making his pro boxing debut.
Mayweather first retired in 2015. He knocked out Japanese kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa in December in an exhibition bout and indicated in the Reuters interview that he could make plenty of money competing in similar exhibitions.
“You have got to know when to hang it up,” Mayweather said. “I had a great career.”
He also has a thriving promotional company among other business interests and said he wants to focus on those endeavors. Mayweather has often discussed extending his brand into MMA.
“My career went great,” he said. “I’m happy with how everything played out.”
Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on Twitter.
