Floyd Mayweather Challenges Julio César Chávez to an Exhibition Fight
Former world champion Floyd Mayweather, who held titles in five weight divisions, did not rule out the possibility of facing Mexican boxing legend Julio César Chávez in a future exhibition match.
"Chávez is a legend; he paved the way for fighters like me. If we were both younger, it would be a great fight. You never know what could happen in the future," Mayweather said to the media after the weigh-in ceremony for his bout against John Gotti III, taking place this Saturday in Mexico City.
Earlier in the week, "Money" made headlines by claiming in a press conference before the exhibition against Gotti that he could defeat both Chávez and his son, Julio César Chávez Jr., in the same night, even without using his hands. However, he showed respect for Chávez and mentioned seeing a poster on Chávez's Instagram account, hinting at a possible fight on September 16th in Las Vegas, which Mayweather denied would happen on that date.
Weighing in at 160 pounds on Friday, Mayweather will face Gotti, who tipped the scales at nearly 184 pounds. Despite the weight difference, there were no protests from either side for Saturday's bout, marking Mayweather's first fight in Mexico.
"It will be a great event because of the atmosphere and the people. Mexico has produced great champions and fighters over the years. I want to thank the Mexican people for supporting me throughout my career," said Floyd, who retired in 2017 with an undefeated record of 50-0.
At 47 years old, Mayweather will step into the ring for the second time against Gotti, the grandson of a mafia boss; their first fight in 2023 was stopped in the sixth round, out of the scheduled eight, due to the referee's inability to control the verbal exchanges between the fighters. Following the stoppage, Gotti charged at Mayweather, leading to a brawl between the fighters' teams, which even spread to some of the spectators.
Although Gotti had a brief verbal exchange with a member of "Money's" team on Friday, Mayweather diffused the situation by urging his opponent to remain calm, suggesting no lingering animosity between the two. They are set to fight eight two-minute rounds in a match without judges.
Saturday's card also features another exhibition, this time between Mayweather's former rival Víctor Ortiz and Argentine Rodrigo Damián Coria. The professional bouts include Mexican boxing prospect Alan David Picasso facing Armenian Azat Hovhannisyan in the super bantamweight division, and Luis Rodríguez versus César Vaca in a super middleweight clash between two Mexican fighters.