The Most Exciting Athlete of My Time

At 25, I certainly run the risk of calling this one too early but I feel pretty confident in this much - Floyd Mayweather is the most exciting athlete I will ever bear witness to. There are so many superlatives you can label an athlete with and I really think I have seen all the best. The most clutch in Tom Brady or David Ortiz, the most Dominant in Kelly Slater or Michael Jordan, the most talented in Wayne Gretzky and these are just the general ones. To be the most exciting is as high as it gets for me. Sports exist to excite, plain and simple. Nobody has brought excitement to their sport more than Pretty Boy Floyd.

Boxing has been dying a long, slow death in the US since it peaked back in the 1950's. There are several reasons for this, the biggest being the rise of team sports such as football and basketball. Maybe also because American boxers have largely turned out to be nutbags. Tyson began raping, biting and tattooing his face, Foreman gained 200 pounds and started hawking shitty grills, and Evander decided that age ain't nothing but a number and got beat down by a dude some 13 years his junior. Those are just the big names. Let's not forget Peter McNeelly and Vinny Pazienza - borderline amateurs but first class psychos.

Given boxing's loss of relevancy in the US, it is tough to imagine the most exciting athlete coming from that arena but it really speaks to the person, not the sport. His record is what it is. He is the greatest to come around in a long, long time. He's never lost a professional fight and he's really only been challenged a handful of times. He's constantly fought the best and won convincingly fight after fight. That is not what makes him so exciting. The excitement comes from his brash, arrogant style. In a world of political correctness and touchy feely press conferences where opponents awkwardly jerk each other off, it is so refreshing to have a guy that talks so much shit and BACKS IT UP. Sure Joey Porter talks shit, he's guaranteed how many wins this year? The 'Fins are 0-12. Ray Lewis runs his mouth, the Raven are bound for a top 12 draft pick.

We want athletes to raise the bar as much as possible. We want coaches to challenge their team by insulting their opponent's. How great would it have been if Bill Belichick stood up there before the Ravens game and questioned why the spread was so small. Instead we got to listen to him fellatiate Ed Reed for three solid days. We never have to worry about that when it comes to Mayweather. Take the following quotes from his recent chat on ESPN -

"I'm not going to predict a round, but I can guarantee you he won't make twelve."

"I'm being honest, I haven't had to adjust to his approach. Whatever he tries to do will not matter, because I'll dictate what happens come Saturday night."

"My legacy is already secured. I've proven that by winning six titles in five weight classes in under nine years. This is a great, great fight because I know he's going to bring his best. He doesn't want to let his country down. There will be over 30,000 Brits coming over to the U.S., which is great for the sport. I just relish getting in that ring come Saturday night and proving everybody wrong who thinks he has a chance."

There is no doubt in my mind he will back this up come Saturday night. There is a very good chance that this could be Mayweather's final fight. Then again, we thought the same thing following the De La Hoya fight. For our sake, I hope we are wrong again. If this is the last hurrah then cherish it for what it is worth. We will probably never see another athlete like this again. Whatever you do, make sure you are in front of a TV on Saturday night and pay the $60 to watch the fight, you will not be disappointed.