FLOYD MAYWEATHER lavished praise on “unbelievable” UK boxing fans after beating Aaron Chalmers at the O2, despite barely anyone seeming to turn up.
“Money” made his UK boxing debut in the eight-round exhibition bout against Chalmers.
Mayweather praised the fans after the fight and hinted at a possible return in the future.
He said: “I would like to thank all the UK fans. The fans are unbelievable.
“The UK is becoming the Mecca of boxing. Unbelievable fighters.
“I’m glad that I came… If the fans want me to come back, I’m coming back.”
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This was despite London’s O2 Arena being sparsely populated for the event as promoters struggled to sell tickets, with some even offering 20 per cent discounts in order to attract more custom.
Indeed, the entire top tier of the 20,000-capacity stadium was shut off, while there were still swathes of empty seats in the lower tier.
The fight itself saw the 50-0 legend completely outclass his opponent.
Mayweather spent the large part of the opening rounds grinning at his opponent rather than boxing.
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He picked his shots carefully and methodically, even if a little too tentative for the crowd’s liking.
The 46-year-old eventually relaxed into his groove and even enjoyed a dance with a ring girl between rounds.
The end result of a wide points win for Mayweather never seemed in doubt.
But the referee raised both fighters’ arms at the end to signal a draw.
Fans at home were left far from satisfied, claiming they had been “robbed” after paying £25 to watch the fight.
And while Mayweather insisted he did not point fingers, he claimed tickets going on sale too late caused the lack of a crowd.
He added: “We did this in one month – not even four weeks.
“I think the tickets should’ve went on sale a lot faster.
“My new team is still learning. I have got to take my hat off to them, it’s not their fault.
“It’s just when we fight in the US, as soon as we announce the fight, tickets are on sale.
“Here, we announced the fight and the tickets didn’t go on sale until a week or two weeks later.
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“I don’t point fingers. We work together as a team.
“When you buy tickets over here, you don’t really want to spend money. In America, we don’t mind spending money.”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
