Floyd Mayweather, Jr. (Photo : REUTERS)
The rumors that Floyd Mayweather will come out of retirement continue to escalate as more signs emerge.
One of the latest teases came from ESPN when they reported that they have just registered some interesting trademarks.
"The company owned by Mayweather, who said he was discussing guarantees that would top $100 million if he returned, filed for trademarks to 'TMT 50' and 'TBE 50' on April 21, ESPN.com has learned. Records recently posted on the U.S. Patent & Trademark website confirm the filings," the report stated.
As presumed, TMT stands for The Money Team and TBE stands for The Best Ever. 50 is a reference to Floyd Mayweather's win-loss record which currently stands at 49-0.
The trademarks were filed more than a week before the interview where Money May stated that "you just never know" when admitting that he did have talks with CBS and Showtime.
If Mayweather were to return, the soonest possible date would be September 2016 as he would often schedule his fights on the Mexican holidays (May and September) , as pointed out by Boxing News 24.
However, since Mayweather retired last September, Canelo Alvarez has proceeded to take those fight dates as his own. The Mexican fighter is slated to fight Amir Khan on May 7 and has everyone anticipating his WBC title defense with Gennady 'GGG' Golovkin in September.
Could Mayweather's return push off the most anticipated fight in boxing today? BN24 writer Jeff Aranow says "No."
"As popular as Mayweather is, it would be difficult for him to push Canelo-Golovkin off the Mexican holiday date in September. That's an immovable fight unless Mayweather takes on someone really popular," Aranow said.
There are not a lot of fighters who could bring a "nine figure payday" for Mayweather let alone trump the popularity of Canelo vs Golovkin. One interesting angle is for Mayweather to fight the undefeated Golovkin, but with Mayweather's statements, that seems out of the question.
"I think that it's best that he go up and fight Andre Ward," Mayweather said in the Showtime interview. "I think that would be a good fight for Triple G and Andre Ward. How can Floyd Mayweather fight at 160 [pounds] when I can never even make 154?"
A rematch with Canelo himself would not merit the same interest as a clash of two undefeated fighters. A rematch with Pacquiao has still left a bitter memory for most boxing fans. Other fighters like Keith Thurman, Shaun Porter, Kell Brook or even Danny Garcia would also not rake the cash in.
In any case, even Mayweather would have to take a backseat to Canelo vs. GGG.
