‘Hungry’ Mayweather sidesteps controversy

Whether he's in the ring or on the phone, Floyd Mayweather Jr. never forgets that he's boxing's best counterpuncher.

His nearly two-year hiatus from the ring hasn't inhibited his ability to dodge swings from his opponents. On Tuesday, he deftly eluded questions about how his latest incident away from the ring was impacting his preparations to return to boxing Sept. 19 when he fights Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand Garden.

"People just want to dwell on the negative things," he told reporters on a conference call when asked about the Aug. 23 shooting incident at the Crystal Palace skating rink in Las Vegas. Metro Police continue to investigate. "We try to focus on the positive. My main thing is to focus on the fight Sept. 19."

Police seized guns, ammunition and bullet-proof vests from Mayweather's Las Vegas home last week. However, Mayweather's manager, Leonard Ellerbe, maintains Mayweather was not involved in the incident.

Mayweather's uncle Roger, who trains him, is facing criminal charges of felony coercion and battery strangulation after an Aug. 3 incident at a Las Vegas apartment involving a 25-year-old woman. He has been free on $13,000 bail since being arrested.

"You can read 300 articles about me and 250 of them are negative," Mayweather said. "But they're writing about me because I'm entertaining. Once you achieve success, people want to see you fail. There's a lot of negativity in the world."

Mayweather, 32, a six-time world champion who is 39-0, said there have been no distractions, and camp is going well.

"I'm strong-minded. I have a good team. I'm hungry," he said. "Our game plan is to go out and do what we have to do."

He said his old sharpness has returned and that the layoff, which began after he stopped Ricky Hatton in December 2007, might have helped.

"The rest helped me physically and mentally," he said. "I feel better than before the break."

Mayweather said his June rib injury, which caused the July 18 date to be moved to Sept. 19, is not an issue.

"Everything is fine," he said. "That's in the past. I feel strong and I'm ready to fight."

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913.