Floyd 'Money' Mayweather, who is eyeing the record held by Rocky Marciano in the boxing ring for years, has stated that once he is done with Andre Berto, Philippine's Manny Pacquiao will take over from him as the best boxer in the world.
The American boxer is all set to meet Berto in the final fight of his career on Saturday in Las Vegas, and Mayweather will hang up his gloves after equalling Marciano's record of 49-0 in a boxing ring, assuming he wins.
History was created when Mayweather faced off with Pacquiao earlier this year in a fight billed as the "Fight of the Century" at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, as pay-per-view records were shattered and both the decorated pound-for-pound boxers became richer by hundreds of millions.
Mayweather clinched the victory via unanimous decision after 12 rounds, as he showed his composure and made calculated jabs and punches, in contrast to Pacquiao's agressive approach in the match. At the end of it all, Mayweather got richer by at least $120 million and took away the unified WBC, WBA, WBO, and The Ring welterweight titles.
While 'PacMan' has been asking for a rematch after the first fight in May, the 38-year-old Mayweather has mentioned time and again that the fight against Berto on Saturday will be his final in the boxing ring. And come Sunday morning, Pacquiao will take over as the best.
On being asked who will be the next best boxer once he retires, Mayweather said: "We don't know. We'll have to see. Probably Manny Pacquiao. We can't just take that away from him because he lost to me. I would say Manny Pacquiao. He is a great world champion and he is my toughest opponent.
"'When I'm done, after all he has done, he will be the best left. Others may come up behind us and there are some very good young fighters. But it takes more than that to be the best in the world. Manny's a hell of a fighter, one of the best fighters I've faced in my career."
According to several reports, Pacquiao is set to face British pro boxer Amir Khan in his next bout, and even Pacquiao's promoter Bob Arum has spoken about the same. "This kid Amir Khan keeps shooting his mouth off about Manny Pacquiao. I can arrange for Khan to fight Pacquiao. Amir Khan has been begging Mayweather for a fight and now he can get a major fight," Arum was quoted as saying by The Telegraph.
Meanwhile, Arum has also stated that Pacquiao, who also has a political career to look after, could retire in 2016, if he is appointed as a senator in Philippines.
