It was a travesty, nearly anyone of substance in boxing agrees, that Floyd Mayweather Jr. failed to win a gold medal in the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. He was so much more gifted than the rest of the field that it was almost insulting to pull a bronze medal over his head and place it around his neck.
How will the fight end?
- Mayeather by KO
- Mayweather by decision
- Mosley by KO
- Mosley by decision
- Draw
Mayweather’s loss to Bulgarian Serafim Todorov conjured up uneasy memories for U.S. boxing fans of the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, Korea, when Roy Jones Jr. was robbed of a one-sided win. Despite his loss, Jones was still voted the most outstanding boxer of those Games.
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And it was obvious, despite his loss to Todorov, that Mayweather was the elite talent coming out of the Atlanta Games.
The 1996 Olympics produced a number of quality fighters, including David Reid, Fernando Vargas, Wladimir Klitschko, Vassiliy Jirov, Antonio Tarver, Thomas Ulrich, Oktay Urkal and Daniel Santos.
None of them, though, were nearly as gifted as Mayweather.
He quickly proved that in the professional rankings, ripping through his opposition and winning a world championship in his 18th professional bout, less than two years after turning pro.
Yet, as magnificent as he was in the ring, he was hardly embraced by the boxing community. He struggled to sell tickets to his fights. He battled with reporters. He feuded with his promoter, Bob Arum of Top Rank. He split with his father. He deemed a lucrative contract offer from HBO “slave wages.”
It wasn’t until his 34th fight, midway through his ninth year as a professional, when he battered Arturo Gatti in Atlantic City, that he truly became a star. He didn’t become universally loved – as many fans buy his fights hoping to see him knocked out or beaten up as those who do who are hoping to see him win – but the victory over Gatti served notice that he would become a major financial force in the sport.
“It took until the Gatti fight for everyone else’s opinion of Floyd to catch up to Floyd’s opinion of Floyd,” said John Hornewer, an attorney who represents Mayweather.
