Floyd Mayweather ran backstage screaming 'I'll kill that motherf---er' after Jake Paul tried to steal his hat
Floyd Mayweather could be heard screaming "I'll kill that motherf---er," at Jake Paul after the YouTuber tried to steal his hat at a press event Thursday in Florida.
The retired boxer and influencer brothers Jake and Logan Paul were at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens to promote a June 6 exhibition involving Mayweather and Logan, the older brother.
The bout is not an official boxing match and will not count on either person's athletic record, however, there was a surprising amount of bad blood after the press conference had finished.
Jake Paul had been trying to antagonize Mayweather, while the legendary fighter was on stage with his brother. In one instance, he untied the boxer's shoelaces when he got to the edge of the stage.
As Mayweather gave interviews to reporters to the side of the field, Jake Paul found his way within trolling distance of the boxer, grabbed the hat off the top of his head, and said: "I've got your hat" before trying to run away.
He did not get very far. Mayweather — together with his bodyguards and entourage — chased the 24-year-old, appeared to throw punches, and left Paul with a black eye.
That was not the end of it.
As the brawl worked its way backstage in the venue, Mayweather could be heard saying: "I'll kill that motherf---er" over and over again.
You can see footage of the incident below (WARNING — contains foul language):
WILD ????????????????#MayweatherPaul pic.twitter.com/dd787brfm8
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) May 6, 2021
Paul's handlers shoved the creator into a bathroom in a bid to protect him.
He then tweeted: "Word on the street already is that Floyd is sending goons after me to try and kill me or hurt me.
"If I die … I died for the hat."
Mayweather calmed down in time for pre-fight promo photos
Mayweather retired with an unblemished pro boxing record of 50 wins from 50 fights in 2017, and left the sport as boxing's greatest money-maker and one of the greatest fighters of all time.
With that experience in pay-per-view events, the 44-year-old is accustomed to pre-fight drama.
But it has been rare to seem him as rage-filled as he was when reacting to Jake Paul's trolling.
He soon calmed down, however, and posed for pre-fight promotional photographs.
The June 6 exhibition takes place at the Hard Rock Stadium and will be broadcast on Showtime pay-per-view.
Though the headlining bout between Mayweather and Logan Paul is not a legitimate fight, it does top a fight-card that features proper bouts.
Badou Jack and Jean Pascal will compete in a rematch of a 2019 bout in which they tried to bludgeon one another, Luis Arias fights Jarrett Hurd, and many Mayweather Promotions wonderkids will also compete in the show.