Is Mayweather a better fighter than Mohammad Ali?

EVEN though Floyd Mayweather has yet to suffer defeat, it’s a far cry to compare him against the greatest boxer to ever live, Muhammad Ali.

Both fought in different weight classes so it’s like comparing a horse racing sprinter to a Melbourne Cup winner, but Mayweather believes he’s a better fighter than Ali.

“No one can ever brainwash me to make me believe that Sugar Ray Robinson and Muhammad Ali was better than me,” Mayweather said.

“No one could ever brainwash me and tell me that.

“But one thing I will do, I’m going to take my hat off to them and respect those guys because those are the guys that paved the way for me to be where I’m at today.”

He then discussed his Leon Spinks experience and Ali’s strategy when he fought George Foreman in the 1974 Rumble in the Jungle.

“Leon Spinks only had seven fights,” he said.

“Never put a fighter in there with Floyd Mayweather with seven fights.

“Take punishment and let a man tire himself out from beating you?,” Mayweather said in regard to Ali’s “rope-a-dope” strategy.

“You hit him with a few punches and go down and you want to be glorified for that?”

Neither Mayweather ($1.46 at Sportsbet.com.au) or Manny Pacquiao have scored knockout wins in some time, so Mayweather should seriously think about using Ali’s coveted strategy.

“No disrespect to Muhammad Ali, but he did it in one division. Ali lost to a fighter with seven fights (on his record, Leon Spinks), but he’s still known as ‘The Greatest’. That’s what he put out there. It is what it is,” said Mayweather.

Mayweather might be two years older than Pacquiao, but he has the edge in the fitness battle against Pacquiao, whom could still be struggling after being knocked out by Juan Manuel Marquez in 2012. That could still be playing in the mind of the Filipino native, but there has been plenty of money for the 36-year-old.

Tickets sell out in 60 seconds

Tickets for the “Fight of the Century” went on sale just hours ago and sold out within one minute.

Only 500-1000 tickets went on sale to the general public, priced between US$1500 – $7500, with most of the 16,500 tickets available going to both Mayweather and Pacquiao camps.

One ticket ended up selling for US$141,575 on StubHub, a website where people can sell their unwanted tickets.

Other tickets sold for as much as $70,000, with many ticket holders advertising their tickets in the six-figure range – definitely a good chance to make some coin!

Mayweather will earn an estimated $120 million from the fight, but the Las Vegas fighter says he could have retired already.

“I’m blessed I’m making some good investments, and if I wanted to retire today I could,” Mayweather said.

“I wanted to make nine figures in one night. It took me speaking out with a loud voice and a lot of personality, but as you get older you mature.

“I’ve beaten everyone for 17 years. I know what I can do. I have a good team, my children are healthy. I did a lot of talking to get to a certain point. It was a brilliant game plan.”