"Me and Al [Haymon], we get calls all day, every day from different people, you know. Everybody wants to fight Floyd. I mean, let's face it, you know, there are a number of very, very good fighters out there. There are a couple of great fighters that are out there, and you know, it speaks volumes when you have light heavyweights calling out Floyd Mayweather, you have super middleweights calling out Floyd Mayweather, and at the end of the day, Floyd Mayweather is that cash cow and the way to get paid at that level, all roads go to Floyd Mayweather," stated Mayweather Promotoins CEO Leonard Ellerbe, who made a surprise visit to FightHype Radio last week to discuss a number of topics, including the success of Mayweather vs. Canelo. Although Ellerbe did not discuss any details about who Floyd Mayweather might face next, he did reveal that, surprisingly, the most enjoyable even that he and Mayweather have been involved in was their 2007 encounter with British icon Ricky Hatton.
"The Ricky Hatton fight. I've never, ever experienced anything like that, you know, in all these year of boxing. The British fans, I just can't say enough. They were just unbelievable. Coming in from meetings and etcetera from the gym, 2, 3, 4 in the morning; the kind of fan support that they had for Ricky Hatton at that time was just unbelievable. They're the best fans I've ever been associated with as far as actually supporting their guy," Ellerbe explained as he recalled his experience during the event. "You know, coming down that tunnel, I had never felt that kind of feeling, you know, the euphoria that you felt just walking down that tunnel. I mean, it was just remarkable. I mean, it was way bigger, in my opinion, than the 2007 fight with Oscar; just walking down that tunnel, you know, the noise level, it was just epic. I had never felt it, and obviously I've been a part of all of these fights, so, you know, and walking down the tunnel, I've never felt or experienced anything like that. Floyd probably would agree with the same thing because I think we've had that conversation. It was just unbelievable."
Though Hatton came up short that night, suffering the first loss of his career via 10th round knockout, his fans still stood by him as they continued to sing and cheer even when the fight was over. More surprisingly, however, was the level of respect and praise that his fans also directed towards Mayweather. "He won them over, and right now, they're very, very loyal supporters of Mayweather Promotions. They're the best. I mean, Floyd loves all his fans, but the British fans, they really, really support their guys, they really do, and they're very, very knowledgeable. You have a lot of knowledgeable boxing fans, but, you know, as a country, they just love the sport. They appreciate the sport. They appreciate the art of boxing," Ellerbe continued. "Their hero [Ricky Hatton], he went out and he put up a gallant effort and he came up short, and Floyd acknowledged the fans for coming out all the way from England to support, you know, him, and they were still cheering. They were drunk, but they were still cheering."
With the recent news that British native Amir Khan has decided to pass on a December 7 clash with IBF welterweight champion Devon Alexander, you can't help but wonder if Mayweather Promotions will try to reproduce that same type of experience with British fans in the near future.
[ Follow Ben Thompson on Twitter @fighthype ]