"I have never seen him that angry. Not even in the McGregor press tour, when it was very personal," Floyd Mayweather could not contain his rage during the infamous clash with YouTuber Jake Paul in Miami
Tuesday 1 June 2021 06:04, UK
Floyd Mayweather's furious response to the infamous Jake Paul incident was a rare loss of composure, according to members of the boxing legend's inner circle.
The social media star sparked a wild brawl by ripping a baseball cap off Mayweather, who had been attending a media event for his exhibition bout against Logan Paul this Sunday, live on Sky Sports Box Office.
Mayweather had clashed angrily with Jake Paul, amid a wild scuffle with security, and the former world champion then vented his rage in front of the watching media.
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"He was really p***ed. I haven't seen him that p***ed for quite some time," Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions, told Sky Sports.
"It was the disrespect of snatching his hat."
Stephen Espinoza, Showtime's president of sports and event programming, had accompanied Mayweather during the fiery build-up to the Conor McGregor fight.
"I have never seen him that angry," Espinoza told Sky Sports about Mayweather's scuffle with Jake Paul.
"Not even in the McGregor press tour, when it was very personal.
Floyd felt disrespected. He was very angry.
"It was not arranged or pre-planned by Floyd or his team. I think Jake very much had it pre-planned and capitalised in his own unique way. From the tattoo to the merchandise, to everything he made out of it.
"From Floyd, I think that in some of the same way that the McGregor press tour changed the perception of that event. It went from being a circus to realising there's real animosity there.
[The Jake incident] has layered on a little more motivation for both sides.
"Floyd felt disrespected. He was very angry. He's not that good an actor, to be quite honest, to show that level of wrath on command for something he wasn't really angry about, so very much so, it angered him."
Jake issued a mocking apology after acquiring a commemorative tattoo and merchandise to mark his physical confrontation with Mayweather.
Older brother Logan has even suggested that Mayweather will attempt to punish him this weekend.
"He's trying to make an example of the big brother, so the younger brother has to suffer and watch and witness," said Logan Paul.
"I don't know if you've seen 'Scarface', but that's what he's trying to do."
Jake Paul has been warned about antagonising Mayweather again this week, just days before the former pound-for-pound No 1 shares the ring with Logan.
"Jake is not stupid," Ellerbe told Sky Sports.
"Jake has become famous on the internet for bringing attention to that. That's what he does. You can't knock his hustle.
"But what he did on that day? It was disrespectful. You saw the reaction and it was justified."
Watch Mayweather v Logan Paul on Sunday, live on Sky Sports Box Office, from midnight. Book it via your Sky remote or book it online here. Non-Sky TV subscribers can book and watch it here.
