A day after his victory over Luis Collazo (36-7, 19 KOs) last night on Premier Boxing Champions on ESPN, unbeaten WBA welterweight champion Keith Thurman (26-0, 22 KOs) is patiently waiting by the phone for undefeated boxing legend of the sport Floyd Mayweather Jr. (48-0, 26 KOs) to call him and say he’s going to fight him on September 12th rather than someone like Karim Mayfield and Andre Berto.
Thurman, who did not shine against Collazo, feels that he would give Mayweather an exciting fight that the boxing public would want to see for September. Thurman believes that his ability to box as well as punch would make it difficult for the 38-year-old Mayweather to deal with him. Thurman compares himself to Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, who Mayweather beat two years ago. But the Thurman believes he’s got better conditioning, movement and boxing skills compared to the 24-year-old Canelo.
“We normally don’t run laps on Sunday, but if the call [from Mayweather] happens, I’ll be happy to go right back to work. I love the sport of boxing,” Thurman said to ESPN.com. “We’ll see what happens next. He’s the kind of the welterweight division, and I want to be a legend in the sport. I feel like the best way to become a legend is to beat a legend. He’s not going to be around that much longer. Everybody knows that. I’d just like an opportunity to showcase my skills and my talent to the world.”
Mayweather is definitely on his way out of the sport, and it’s not surprising that Thurman is looking to make a concerted effort to get the fight against Mayweather before he retires.
What was interesting about the Premier Boxing Champions show last night was how sportscaster Dick Vitale was interviewed, where he said “Mr. Mayweather, give the kid a shot,” in referring to Thurman. That’s pretty much all Vitale had to say. Thurman’s manager is Al Haymon, and it looked like it was a setup to make a case for Thurman getting the fight against Mayweather. It was a clever move, but I don’t think it’s going to pay off with Mayweather agreeing to fight Thurman. He’s too inexperienced right now, and his opposition has consisted of mostly older veterans at the end of their careers, fringe contenders, and 2nd tier fighters. Thurman hasn’t fought any of the big five – Shawn Porter, Kell Brook, Amir Khan, Marcos Maidana or Tim Bradley – yet, and he should have fought at least one of them by now. Khan did a better job beating Collazo than Thurman did, a much better job. If Mayweather is going to pick someone to fight, Khan would be the better option than Thurman right now because he’s a lot smoother and more efficient.
“I’m exciting. If I fight Floyd Mayweather Jr., I’ll be one of his toughest challenges, and it’ll be an exciting fight,” Thurman said. “You can guarantee that. I’ve been through a lot of diversity, even though I’m only 26-years-old, and I feel like I’m ready. I’m a current champion, and an undefeated champion. I can box and punch. I think fans want to see Floyd fight somebody that can hurt him, plus fight someone who’s undefeated. He’s fighting a lot of fighters that have been beaten before.”
