Floyd Mayweather in Cannock: A night of bling with king of the ring

He is the undefeated legend and richest boxer of all time, usually strutting his stuff at Las Vegas's MGM Grand in the company of Hollywood A-listers.

Poor ticket sales saw the latest leg of his UK tour switched from Birmingham's swanky Resorts World.

With that, it came to be that Floyd Mayweather Jnr would find himself on stage in Scott Murray's Premier Suite at Bar Sport in Cannock town centre.

From start to finish, it was always going to be something of a surreal experience.

It will surprise no-one that 'Money' arrived fashionably late to the Premier Suite lounge as the audience were told his private jet, flying in to Birmingham, had been 'delayed a little bit'.

But when the flamboyant 38-year-old did appear it was in typically lavish fashion.

He came striding out of a jet black Rolls Royce alongside his 26-strong entourage who pulled up in other extravagant cars – all in matching black – apart from a lime green Lamborghini.

There was the notable absence of the likes of Beyonce and Jay-Z walking down a red carpet.

But, nevertheless, stilt walkers and fire eaters gracing the entrance did their best to bring a bit of Vegas razzle dazzle to the venue on a cold wintry night in Cannock.

The announcement that 'Mayweather is in building' inevitably followed.

After 'chilling' in the back for more than an hour he finally made his eagerly anticipated appearance around 10.17pm.

He walked out the strains of 'Versace' by hip hop group Migos which had been playing on a loop for a good 15 minutes.

It prompted frenzied excitement from the 300-capacity crowd who stood on seats and whipped out their smartphones to capture the moment.

He wore a sharp red t-shirt with black stars amd a baseball cap with the reverse colour scheme.

Accessories came with a diamond encrusted watch and star medallion ticking the customary bling box, as Mayweather took his place on the stage.

In his opening remarks the one-time best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet, now driving his Mayweather Promotions company, paid tribute to his 'loyal' British fans.

It was probably a ploy for an easy-cheer early on as well as a swipe at the US media who deride him for his cash-counting antics and arrogance inside and outside of the ring – despite his talent.

He said: "UK fans are ride or die, they stick with you to the end. They are loyal fans.

"The ultimate goals is to bring big fights out here to the soccer stadiums. Of course, we want to sign UK fighters as well."

From there Telford-boxing hero and guest interviewer for the evening Richie Woodhall quizzed Pretty Boy about his meteoric rise to the top.

The obvious questions and topics would all surface at some stage from his apparent obsession for money to his long-time rival Manny Pacquiao.

But the initial conversation started on ground many fans neglect to remember about Floyd Jnr – his poor and violent upbringing.

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Mayweather said: "I have never really talked about the adversity I went through to get to this point.

"My mom was on drugs, my dad got shot, he used me as a shield because he knew his brother wouldn't shoot if I was in his arms."

Sadly, insight into that character-shaping part of his life was kept all-too brief.

When asked by Woodhall if it was this that drove him to his quest for riches, he replied: "I wanted to put my family in a great position.

"I want the best education for my children, I want them to go to the best schools and I want them to surpass me."

It is relatively rare these days to find Mayweather talking in terms where he isn't the centre of the universe.

His, dare I say it, more modest side comes out further when he is asked about the various fighters he has faced. Take Genaro Hernandez who Mayweather defeated in 1998, aged 21, to win his first world title.

He revealed he had Hernandez's poster above his head as a boy, ripping it out of the middle of a boxing magazine because it was the only pages printed in colour.

He said: "I used to watch this guy fight, on a regular all of the time. I think I was 15. Six years later the same guy I used to watch I was across from him.

"He was very, very crafty. I seen the difference between a guy who's green and a guy who's a veteran."

Hernandez never fought again having injured himself in the fight. In 2011 at the age of 48 he died after battling cancer. Mayweather paid for his funeral.

He said: "This guy gave me my chance, so I had to do it."

Asked about other notable opponents he declared that the 'rough, tough, and rugged' Ricky Hatton of Manchester, who he defeated by technical knockout 2007, would be a future 'Hall of famer'.

That went down exceptionally well with the Premier Suite crowd who bellowed out 'there's only one Ricky Hatton.'

It was perhaps the only time chants of 'T.B.E' – coined from Mayweather's claim to being 'The Best Ever' – were drowned out on the night.

But the pound-for-pound king's charm offensive came to an abrupt end when he was asked about his not-to-be fight with Sheffield fan-favourite 'Prince' Naseem Hamed in 2001.

The former champion declared: "I wanted to make it happen. He wanted to be friends. I didn't want to be friends."

Adding fuel to the fire one fan asked why Mayweather did not accept a fight with Bolton's Amir Khan last year.

At that stage, premium ticket holders who paid up to £550 for a photo with the Superstar after the show, were fearing he was about to storm off.

But to his credit, Mayweather stayed cool, waited for his moment and just like one of his trademark counter-punches delivered a knockout blow.

He retorted: "I couldn't fight everyone. It has to make business sense." Chants of 'T.B.E.' rang out once more.

The inevitable enquiry as to why his hotly anticipated showdown with Pacquiao did not come when both were in their prime was dismissed with less of a sweat.

Mayweather said: "The first time I tried to make the fight with Manny Pacquiao I wanted random blood testing.

"He wanted to be notified when they were coming to do the random blood testing. I said 'that's not random. And that was that."

On the night he told fans how as a child he would stand on a chair and hit the speed bag while people came to the gym just to watch him. He was aged four at the time.

Floyd Jnr credits his father with teaching him ' the sweet science of boxing, to hit and not get hit.'

But in a rare acknowledgement of his own vulnerabilities Mayweather revealed that the sheer wear and tear on his body forced him to change his style.

He said: "Early on I was a huge power puncher, a knockout artist, but you have to learn to make adjustments. As I got older my body started to break down.

"Over half of my fights my body was not 100 per cent."

Looking up at the giant screen behind him at his last fight, against Andre Berto, he added: "I was using my B game to beat a guy like that."

Woodhall asked whether he would be tempted out of retirement in search of victory number 50, to break the record of Rocky Marciano.

Mayweather replied: "I didn't go into the sport really focusing on breaking records, I got into the sport to display my skills.

"Rocky Marciano, what he did, he is a legendary champion and a great person. But I don't want boxing to retire me. I wanted to retire from the sport with all of my faculties."

At no point was the former champion on the ropes and it was a solid hour-long insight into the more human side of Mayweather.

But that said, the boxing legend was truly stumped when the microphone was handed to a young boy who stood atop a chair and asked: "What is your favourite car?"

Mayweather smiled, tilted his head thoughtfully and said: "I don't really know. I don't really have a favourite. I like my jet best."

By Carl Jackson