FLOYD MAYWEATHER was so dedicated to his craft he never ‘took a minute off’ in training and is somehow ‘still improving’.
The American all-time great did not retire unbeaten in 50-0 fights having smashed pay-per-view records for no reason.
He put attention into every detail, strenuously protecting his brittle hands and hit the heavy bag and pads nonstop – taking minimal breaks.
SunSport spoke to those closest to Mayweather during his historic reign, to find out what made the legend so unstoppable.
Dmitry Salita, a former sparring partner who has turned his hand to promoting, was on hand to witness the tireless and brutal regime.
Salita, 38, revealed: “Floyd would spend a significant amount of time getting his hands wrapping that was done by the legendary Rafael Garcia.
“That process would take about 40 minutes to one hour, he had a fun and supportive entourage.
“Once he got going it was non stop training with hip hop music soundtrack for two-three hours.
“I have never seen Floyd take a minute off either during sparring, bag or pad work.
“I also never seen him do the usual three minute rounds it was four or five minute for sparring and 10-15 minute sessions of pad or bag work with only 15/30 seconds rest.”
Mayweather would also adopt a unique style of working out in the early hours of the morning.
He felt it gave him a psychological advantage over his rivals – they slept while he trained.
But his round the clock office hours were not the only thing that stood out – Mayweather would even party IN BETWEEN sessions without ever taking his eye off the ball.
Denis Douglin, his trusted southpaw sparring partner, said: “Everything he does is different, he does his own thing.
“Floyd would go out to the club, finish at three o’clock in the morning and then go and train.
“That was regular. It sounds crazy to the world but the man does what he wants, but he stays focussed. He’s just on a whole different level.”
Former two-weight champion Badou Jack has been part of Mayweather’s team since they agreed a promotional deal in 2011.
He recalls sessions spanning hours on end before then hitting the road for runs – only to be woken up in the middle of the night to do it all again.
Jack, 38, said: “He’s a real workaholic. Nobody works harder than him.
“He’ll do training sessions lasting hours, go into the locker rooms, talks some s*** and then after that he’ll run like six miles.
“He trains some crazy times. I’m not sparring with him but we’d get a call in the middle of the night and he’ll say ‘Get to the gym, we’re working out’.”
Mayweather retired as a pro in 2017, after beating UFC star Conor McGregor in ten rounds.
He did come back a year later, to wipe out featherweight kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa in round one of their exhibition.
Douglin, 33, helped him prepare for both fights by lending him left-handed sparring.
And up until this June, it was the last time the pair had shared rounds in the gym.
So when Douglin received a call from Mayweather in the early hours of the morning, he was expecting to be in for a similar night’s work.
But instead, he was stunned as the retired icon appeared to have come back ‘stronger and faster’ – despite having not fought in two years.
Douglin explained: “I’m not going to lie, to me, it looked like ‘Pretty Boy’ Floyd. He didn’t look like ‘Money Mayweather’.
“It felt like a really good welterweight. I feel like he’s got stronger and faster than the last time we sparred before the Tenshin fight.
“Somehow he’s still improving. He’s a freak of nature. He must be working, but nobody knows he’s working.
“The way we sparred, it was hard, you don’t do 30 minutes straight sparring at my level if you’re not in shape.”
Little did Douglin know, Mayweather was secretly in talks with YouTuber Logan Paul, 25, with the pair now signed to fight in February.
And Salita reckons the crafty veteran was too experienced to let himself lose a step as he prepares to face the social media star in another money-spinning exhibition.
He said: “I believe that a fighter like Floyd always stays in shape.
“But to train like you are getting ready for a fight is a different level of training and and can take away from quality of life in other matters.”
Despite the farcical experience disparity, 0-1 as a pro Paul is armed with a FOUR STONE weight and six inch height advantage.
As a result, Mayweather will secretly leave no stone unturned by training ‘his ass off’ despite facing his most unqualified challenger to date.
Douglin said: “I think he could walk in as he is and still be fine.
“But, Floyd being Floyd, he’s going to train and he’s going to train his ass off. That’s just the level of perfectionist he is.
“The kid is a lot bigger and anything can happen. He lands a freak punch and knocks Floyd out, you change the world of boxing.
“Floyd’s not going to let that happen. Floyd, in my opinion, will train for this.”
