Former two-time world heavyweight champion George Foreman took some time from promoting his new “online butcher’s store” to talk with The Post’s John DeMarzo about Saturday night’s Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Manny Pacquiao megabout.
Why is this fight receiving so much buzz?
Both boxers in their prime wouldn’t have had Facebook or Twitter in its present form. [With] all of the social media, [the fight] couldn’t have been bigger than it is now. More important than an athletic boxing match, it’s the prize, the purse. It’s the purse that’s most valuable, and it never could have been more valuable than it is today.
Why is the purse’s value at its apparent peak?
All of a sudden, the whole world can tune in [via] pay-per-view. You can just go easily on your network, punch: ‘Buy.’ It’s not too complicated. … That makes this fight probably the greatest fight of all time because of this value and the easy-to-order technique now.
Why is this match so appealing on paper?
The fans wanted it. A lot of fights have been greater fights probably than you’ll see come May 2, but nothing that the fans wanted more. They wanted this fight — seldom do fans [get] what they wanted. That’s what makes it valuable: two fighters that the fans want to see box.
What contrasts between the two boxers will attract viewers?
You’ve got one [way] and the other. Mayweather is the other. Pacquiao is kind of traditional, although he’s not an American, but at the same time he’s got this traditional thing: ‘I’m going to go in and work hard and win this thing.’ Mayweather’s this cocky guy: ‘I’m gonna do this, I’m gonna do that.’ He’s still the old road show, the ballyhoo. That’s what makes it something. Really, they’ve got two different styles, so it makes for, you don’t know who’s going to win.
So, the bout is basically a coin flip?
It’s a toss-up. They don’t have a lot of time to train, which means they’re concentrating on this fight. They have to get in the ring, so a lot of times, they’re going to be sloppy about midway through the fight because they didn’t train really well. So they’re going to slug it out a little bit. This is going to be one of the best fights we’ve ever seen.
This fight shouldn’t be a quick one, then.
[No], they’re not the big heavyweights. Don’t look for the big punch, and it’s good because a lot of people remember Sonny Liston and Floyd Patterson [first-round knockout in 1962]. Everybody bought this pay-per-view, ding, boom, the fight is over, 1, 2, 3. You’re not going to see [that]. You’re going to get your money’s worth.
There’s no chance we won’t see a boxer try a shock tactic and go for a quick knockout?
Mayweather doesn’t know how to [throw a quick punch]. He’s a defensive genius. He’s just not an offensive machine. Pacquiao, he’ll be content if he can win six rounds. Go one even and then pull one later on. I think he’s got the edge there.
This match could go to the very end, then?
I think it’s going to go to the end because they’re so careful. Pacquiao understands that he could get knocked out. He knows that. And Mayweather’s thinking, ‘[Pacquiao] has knocked out a lot of guys,’ so he’s going to be careful. One’s going to be scared and the other’s going to be glad of it.
Who has more to gain with a win: Pacquiao or Mayweather?
Pacquiao’s got more to gain. He needs this fight, he needs to win. If the fight goes to the 12th round and he loses, he hasn’t gained anything. [If] Mayweather goes 12 rounds and it’s a controversial decision, we want a rematch. He’s got a lot to lose, but Pacquiao has everything to gain.
Who do you think will win?
I think Pacquiao. He’s smart, he’s the underdog, and there’s nothing like an underdog in a boxing match [and] trying to find a way to win. You get the crowd cheering for you, you feel their strength and they can pull you through. I got a feeling he can win it by one round, on points.
What are the odds we get a rematch one day?
You hope not, because if Mayweather loses the boxing match, he can’t stand losing. [If] you’ve been undefeated and you lose a boxing match, it knocks you off a pedestal. He’s gonna go out and grow a beard and think about this whole deal. A rematch is not gonna be easy.
What do you think this fight will do for boxing?
Every now and then a big boxing match comes along … you know you have a blockbuster in Hollywood, it doesn’t have to move the industry, they just have to have another next year, and another and another. … This boxing is going to be good for that day, but it’s not going to hold boxing up. We need another. It takes years to do that.