Floyd Mayweather Jr’s unretirement announcement landed like a thud for a chunk of boxing fans who thought the book was closed on his professional fighting days. Just days ahead of his 49th birthday, the 50-0 boxer revealed to ESPN that he’ll return to professional boxing after his spring 2026 exhibition with Mike Tyson.

“I still have what it takes to set more records in the sport of boxing,” the boxing legend said in the written statement. “From my upcoming Mike Tyson event to my next professional fight afterwards — no one will generate a bigger gate, have a larger global broadcast audience, and generate more money with each event — then my events. And I plan to keep doing it with my global media partner, CSI Sports/FIGHT SPORTS.”

This comes after several exhibitions since 2017, a lawsuit claiming Showtime owes him “at least” $340 million, and a Tyson exhibition that already feels more like spectacle than sport. The context matters because Floyd Mayweather hasn’t boxed a real pro since 2017, when he stopped Conor McGregor to move to 50–0. Since then, it’s been spectacle bouts with Logan Paul, Mikuru Asakura, John Gotti III, and Tenshin Nasukawa.

The Tyson bout, reportedly targeted for April 25 in the DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo), though other details remain unconfirmed, pairs two men who are a combined 107 years old. Tyson is coming off a lifeless loss to Jake Paul, 30 years his junior, in a Netflix event that did huge numbers and brutal reviews. The math here is simple: the draw is nostalgia and name value, not competitive relevance. Floyd Mayweather knows that. His statement leaned into gates and global audiences, not rankings or belts.

Mayweather calls himself ‘Money,’ and his career purses topped a billion dollars by some estimates. But recent reports about mortgages, lawsuits, foreclosures, and shaky real estate claims have poked holes in the untouchable image. None of that proves he’s broke. But it does explain why every new event feels like a cashing-in moment as much as a competitive one.

News served to you like never before!

Prefer us on Google, To get latest news on feed

Prefer Us on Google

There’s also a sporting angle people keep circling back to. Mayweather would return to a division full of fighters half his age. Manny Pacquiao is also back in the pro ranks, which has reopened talk of a rematch of their 2015 bout. If Mayweather actually takes a sanctioned fight after Tyson, the risk is real. He built a brand on perfection. One loss at 49 doesn’t erase a 50–0 career, but it does change how the ending reads.

Fans not on board as Floyd Mayweather announces the end of his retirement

One fan wrote, “Bruh chill out Floyd. You not beating any real contenders.” That reaction isn’t just age-shaming. It’s about relevance. Mayweather hasn’t faced an active, elite boxer in nearly a decade. Coming back after dancing around exhibitions doesn’t convince fans he’s ready for a real contender.

Another fan pointed out, “This is a man who has wasted and spent all his money point blank and simple…..” Fans are connecting dots between the unretirement and the financial noise around Mayweather. Even if the reality is more complex, perception matters. When a fighter returns, talking about gates and money first, people assume the motivation is survival, not competition.

Someone else dove deeper as they wrote, “Floyd at 49 coming back to protect 50-0 after dancing around 60-year-old Mike? This is the biggest money grab since his Logan Paul fight. Boxing died in 2015 and these exhibitions are just the funeral. Who’s actually paying for this PPV circus?” This hits the core tension. The Tyson bout feels like a warm-up lap for cash, not a test. Fans who sat through the Logan Paul spectacle feel burned. The question isn’t whether people will watch. It’s whether they’ll respect it.

One skeptical fan chimed in with, “Retirement for Floyd is just a holding pattern. He steps away, lets the hype build, waits for the right opponent and the right bag, then magically remembers he has unfinished business. This is not a comeback, it is a scheduled deposit.” This reaction cuts to how fans read Floyd Mayweather’s career management. He’s always treated timing like leverage, not sentiment. Walk away, let scarcity do the marketing, then return when the numbers make sense. Fans aren’t buying the idea that this return is about legacy. They see a business model that’s worked before and expect him to run it back.

And finally, one fan added, “Man gonna lose and ruin his record lmao. Why do these old Greats not know when to let it go?” This one is less about hate and more about fear for the ending. Mayweather built his brand on control and perfection. Coming back at 49, even against carefully chosen opponents, introduces risk he never had to take. Fans have watched legends stay too long and get clipped, and that sticks.

The backlash isn’t really about whether ‘Money’ can still sell a fight. Everyone knows he can. It’s about what this version of selling represents. When Floyd Mayweather talks gates and global audiences first, fans hear a promoter, not a competitor. That doesn’t erase what he was. It reframes what he’s choosing to be now.