Monday 4 May 2015 09:22, UK
Floyd Mayweather says he intends to give up his three welterweight title belts to give other boxers a chance to win them.
The American, who comfortably beat Manny Pacquiao on points with a technical masterclass in their hugely anticipated mega-fight in Las Vegas, confirmed that he would fight once more, in September, but that it may not be a world title bout.
Mayweather holds the WBA, WBC and WBO titles but he says he is going to give them all up, potentially in the next two weeks.
"I made a decision...that my last fight may not be a championship fight," he said. "I'm going to give up all the belts. It's still going to be a 12-round fight. But I'm going to relinquish all the belts. I don't know if it will be on Monday. Probably in a couple of weeks, I'm going to talk with my team. Why? Other fighters need a chance. I'm not greedy."
In his post-fight press conference, Mayweather hit out at the assembled media, who he feels have not given him enough respect over the years and accused him of avoiding a showdown with Pacquiao.
"Muhammad Ali called himself the greatest, but this is my era. And in my era I'm TBE (the best ever). I was born a winner and will die a winner. I'm the American dream," he said.
"A lot of people wanted to turn this fight into good versus evil, but I didn't care to entertain that. I believe in the good man just like he does. I pray and I love my family.
"I didn't really appreciate people calling this God versus the devil. He's done a lot of bad in his life, nobody is perfect. Manny has made mistakes, just like me."
"I knew I had him from round one. I have so much experience I could calculate his moves. I was born a winner and I am going to die a winner.
“I’ve worked hard to put my family in a great situation. But tomorrow, for all those who wrote bad stories about me, I’m going to wake up early and see your stories.
"Everyone's been saying for years that I was scared and I would lose. Everyone said this guy could beat Floyd. That Floyd is a chicken. The non-believers, well Floyd turned them into believers."
Mayweather said that only his desire to keep his word and fulfil his six-fight Showtime contract will see him fight again in September.
"My last fight is in September, and then it's time for me to hang it up," the 38-year-old said. "I'm almost 40 years old now. I've been in this sport for 19 years and have been a champion for 18 years. I'm truly blessed."
Mayweather admitted that the financial rewards of meeting Pacquiao are incredible, even by his standards.
"For my team to hand me a $100 million cheque is remarkable," said Mayweather, whose take from the long-awaited mega-fight with Pacquiao could eventually swell to as high as $200m once all the record-breaking revenue is counted.
The man who has named himself 'Money' said the pay-out was all part of a "brilliant game plan" for his career.
"My goal was to make nine figures in one night," he said.