By James Slater: Fight fans everywhere have surely read all about boxing great Floyd “Money” Mayweather’s recent out-of-the-ring troubles. The 33-year-old is accused of assaulting the mother of two of his children, his former girlfriend Josie Harris, and Mayweather Junior is also in hot water for allegedly threatening the two kids along with Harris, who he is said to have “grabbed by the hair, hit and twisted her arm.”
Along with this, is the penalty the pound-for-pound king (or #2, depending on your opinion) may face for allegedly stealing cell phones belonging to Harris and his children. ESPN.com is reporting that Mayweather faces 8 charges in all, and that if he is convicted of all charges, he could face up to a whopping 34 years behind bars!
Currently free on bail, Mayweather faces a November 9th date for an arraignment. The question is, what will happen if the megastar gets convicted and goes to prison? Speaking purely from a boxing standpoint, where would that leave Mayweather and his fans?
Still at or about his physical peak, with plenty of great performances left to offer, it will be a real shame if Mayweather has boxed his final fight. Currently 41-0(25), Mayweather has proved his greatness, but there is still unfinished business for him in the ring. We all know the whole world wants to see him get it on with Manny Pacquiao – the man “Money” verbally assaulted in his now infamous home video a few days back (later apologizing for his racial taunts) – but that fight will possibly disappear if Mayweather is sentenced to any serious jail time.
Of course, Mayweather wouldn’t be the first megastar boxer to be sent to prison while at the peak of his powers; the name Mike Tyson obviously springs to mind. Tyson, who served three years for a rape charge, came out of jail and regained two of the three heavyweight titles and proved he was an even bigger draw than he had been before jail. Maybe this will be the case with Mayweather.
It all depends on how long Floyd goes away to the big house for, if at all. Not having fought since his dominant points win over “Sugar” Shane Mosley in May of this year, Mayweather has seen his life take a savage and unexpected turn in the months that have followed that 41st pro win.
If Mayweather does go to jail, there will no doubt be many people who will say it was always destined to end up like this for the controversial, sometimes crass-acting boxing legend. As the saying goes, you can take the man out of the ghetto, but you cannot take the ghetto out of the man!