Mayweather delivers racist rant against Pacquiao
Floyd Mayweather Jr. has said he wanted to bring boxing fans into his world — a world that appears to be brimming with racism, homophobia, profanity and anger.
In an approximately 10-minute rant made on UStream video and quickly disseminated all over the Internet, Mayweather unleashed a venomous attack on rival and Philippines native Manny Pacquiao, referring to him as a “faggot,” a “midget” and taking shots at his Asian heritage by claiming he’ll “make me a sushi roll and cook me some rice.”
The video, shot Thursday at one of Mayweather’s homes — he has residences in Las Vegas and Grand Rapids, Mich. — has created a buzz throughout the boxing world. Mayweather started out civilly, saying he’s on vacation from boxing for now but that he plans to fight again and, when he does, he’ll use his social media vehicles to let his fans know via UStream and Twitter.
Then he launched into his personal attacks on Pacquiao, referring to him during most of the remainder of the video as “Poochiao.”
“As soon as we come off vacation, we’re gonna cook that little yellow chump,” Mayweather said. “Once I kick the midget’s ass, I don’t want you all to jump on my (expletive), so you better get on the bandwagon now. I’m gonna cook that (expletive) with cats and dogs. Have some rice with a little barbecue dog.”
Late in the video, Mayweather broke into a song during which he referred to Pacquiao as a “whore” while fielding calls from fans and calling others from his phone, then including them in the video.
Pacquiao, in Dallas on Friday to promote his Nov. 13 fight with Antonio Margarito at Cowboys Stadium, watched the video twice, according to his publicist, Fred Sternburg.
Pacquiao’s statement on the attack by Mayweather was: “The video speaks for itself. I can’t add anything more.”
Sternburg said Pacquiao shook his head each time he watched the video.
“He never said anything,” Sternburg said. “He didn’t show any expression. I couldn’t tell if he was angry or not. He just shook his head and walked away.”
Pacquiao has sued Mayweather, his father, Floyd Sr., and Golden Boy Promotions for defamation of character after they accused Pacquiao of using steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs. That lawsuit, filed in January in California, remains in play, and it’s possible the Mayweather video could be used as evidence if the suit goes to trial.
Toward the end of the video, Mayweather said: “When we do come back, we’ll kick Poochiao’s ass. I’m gonna fight Poochiao when he gets off the power pellets,” an obvious reference to steroids or PEDs.
Attempts to reach Mayweather through his publicist were unsuccessful. Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather’s business manager and adviser, could not be reached for comment.
Pacquiao has said several times during this week’s promotional tour for the Margarito fight that he wants to meet Mayweather in the ring and claims it’s Mayweather who does not want to fight.
Mayweather (41-0) ripped Pacquiao’s record and questioned his business acumen in the video.
“Three losses, two draws,” he said, referring to Pacquiao’s record of 51-3-2. “Oh, hell no. This is America, baby. We’re built on winning. Step your game up, faggot. That (expletive) Pacquiao, he can’t speak no English. He never seen a contract he didn’t like. (Expletive) signed with two companies (Top Rank and Golden Boy). Look it up. Then this (expletive) with Nike only got 70 Gs. I wore Reebok (expletive) for a week for a million dollars.”
Mayweather was impressive in his most recent fight May 1, when he routed Shane Mosley in a 12-round unanimous decision at the MGM Grand Garden. He turned down an opportunity to fight Pacquiao in November, letting a July 16 deadline imposed by Top Rank’s Bob Arum expire.
Mayweather and his camp have denied there were ever negotiations, though HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg, who served as an intermediary in the talks, confirmed Arum’s contention the two sides were indeed in talks to fight in 2010 and Mayweather passed on signing to fight Pacquiao.
Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-397-2913.
PACQUIAO PREFERS TO KEEP FOCUS ON FIGHT WITH MARGARITOARLINGTON, Texas — Manny Pacquiao quickly dismissed Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s video rant about him on Friday, then turned his attention to the task soon at hand — dismissing Antonio Margarito.
Pacquiao concluded his three-city promotional tour with Margarito at Cowboys Stadium, the site of their Nov. 13 fight for the vacant junior middleweight title. The two addressed the media in an end zone plaza instead of on the field, which was being prepared for a college football game.
When asked about the possibility of a bout with Mayweather, who attacked him in an expletive-filled and racist rant of 10 minutes that went viral Friday, Pacquiao responded: “I’m not looking for that fight. I’m satisfied with what I’ve done in boxing already.”
Pacquiao said he’s planning a couple of more fights before retiring, though he gave no indication of who the opponents might be. The seven-division champion said this week that he would face Mayweather if Mayweather accepted the fight.
For now, though, Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 knockouts) is focusing on Margarito (38-6, 27 KOs).
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
