Shawn Porter: I Would Rather Have Had Pacquiao's Career Than Mayweather's
By
Keith Idec
Published On Sun May 24, 2020, 08:32 AM EDT
Floyd Mayweather retired undefeated.
The five-division champion also earned an unprecedented amount of money for a boxer, in excess of $700 million during a pro career that spanned nearly 21 years. And Mayweather beat Manny Pacquiao quite comfortably when they fought five years ago in a welterweight championship match.
Shawn Porter still would rather have had Pacquiao’s career than Mayweather’s. The former IBF/WBC welterweight champion made that revelation in response to a fan’s question during the newest episode of Impact Network’s “Stars and Champions,” which premiered Friday night.
“I’m actually gonna go with Manny,” Porter told host Dan Rafael. “I think that even though Manny has taken a lot of punishment – he’s been in a lot of wars, he’s been in a lot of exciting fights. You know me – I like the war. I like the battle and I like the excitement. So, for those reasons, I would pick Manny. And then on top of that, if you look around the world more people appreciate Manny. More people respect and adore Manny than dislike him [than] Floyd Mayweather.”
Rafael reminded Porter that he was supposed to answer from the perspective of a fighter, not a fan. He told the BoxingScene.com contributor and former ESPN.com writer that he’d still pick Pacquiao, the Filipino legend who also serves his country as a senator.
“Even me as the boxer, because just like when I get in the ring and I get people up on their feet, that’s what Manny Pacquiao did,” Porter said. “And Floyd’s been able to do it, too, but not as [much]. I don’t think the excitement – it was a different level to the excitement. They’re two different fighters. But again, at the end of the day, when Manny Pacquiao goes out and he walks up and down the street, more people are willing to shake his hand and say hi to him than make a mean mug or wanna confront him or anything like that. Which I think a lot of people nowadays don’t appreciate Floyd Mayweather for everything that he’s done for this sport because it’s been overshadowed by some of the things that he’s done outside of the sport.”
The 43-year-old Mayweather (50-0, 27 KOs) retired for the third time following his 10th-round, technical-knockout victory over UFC superstar Conor McGregor in August 2017. The 41-year-old Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) remains the WBA “super” welterweight champion.