Floyd Mayweather's undefeated career had a few close calls, and his father and trainer pointed out one fight he thinks his son actually lost.
Mayweather Jr. ended his career with a perfect 50-0 record and world titles in five divisions from super-featherweight to super-welterweight. But not all of those wins came easy.
In 2002, he beat Jose Luis Castillo by unanimous decision. Some boxing figures felt Castillo should have got the nod that night. Five years later, Mayweather faced Oscar De La Hoya in a fight that would be the only time in his career an official scorecard went to his opponent.
The bout ended in a split decision victory for Mayweather Jr., but his father, Floyd Sr., saw it differently. Speaking about the fight, Mayweather Sr. said he scored it for De La Hoya.
"I'm just gonna be honest with you, man. If you want to call fights by scoring, points system, who's throwing more punches, you had to give it to Oscar. If you're just going on a guy hitting a guy with single shots, you have to give it to my son."
Mayweather Sr. praised his son's defense but felt that based on who landed more punches, De La Hoya deserved the win.
De La Hoya himself claimed that after the fight, Mayweather Sr. approached him and said, "Oscar, you beat my son."
It's worth noting that Mayweather Sr. had trained De La Hoya from 2001 to 2006. He wasn't in De La Hoya's corner for the 2007 fight due to financial disagreements. Instead, he got involved with the HBO broadcast.
The father-son duo had a rocky relationship over the years. They had another falling out in the lead-up to the De La Hoya fight. Some people think this might be why Sr. publicly scored the bout against his son.
Despite these close calls, Mayweather Jr. maintained his undefeated record throughout his career. He retired with a perfect 50-0 record and got inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame, cementing his place as one of boxing's all-time greats.
