Las Vegas: Floyd Mayweather may insist Saturday is his last fight in a stellar career, but his welterweight rivals are hoping they will still get the chance to dethrone the pound-for-pound king.
And they warned that the Las Vegas showdown against massive underdog Andre Berto just might not be the cakewalk that many fans and pundits have predicted.
Mayweather, 38, faces Berto - who has three losses in his last six fights - at the MGM Grand Garden Arena striving to equal the perfect 49-0 record of heavyweight legend Rocky Marciano.
The unbeaten American insists it will be his swansong, the crowning moment of a glittering 19-year career as the best boxer of his generation.
But critics accuse him of bigging up the retirement talk to flog a fight that barely 24 hours away had failed to sell out.
The exciting and unbeaten Keith Thurman (26-0, 22 KOs) said: “This might be the last performance. How eager is Floyd to make a statement and show the world that he is an entertaining fighter?
“I’m here for the mystery factor: Is this his last fight or not?”
The unbeaten Danny Garcia - who like Thurman has designs on a Mayweather match-up - said: “I don’t think it’s going to be his last fight.
“As I said before: If he has to pay taxes on that $250 million (Dh918 million) we are going to see him next year right back in the ring.
“Floyd’s a rich man and has made a lot of money. He knows what he’s doing.”
Hundreds of tickets were still available on Friday less than 24 hours before Mayweather’s welterweight world title defense, an embarrassing blow to the champion.
It is in stark contrast to the feverish anticipation for May’s showdown with Manny Pacquiao, when all seats at the MGM Grand were snapped up in mere minutes.
Mayweather has attempted to drum up interest in Saturday’s bout at the same venue in Las Vegas by declaring challenger Andre Berto - rated by many pundits as a massive underdog - a genuine threat.
Berto’s respected trainer, Virgil Hunter, has talked up “personal issues” between the two fighters. But it would appear that the paying public are not buying it.
The lukewarm interest from fight fans will be particularly galling for Mayweather, 38, because victory over Berto would put him equal with heavy legend Rocky Marciano with a perfect 49-0 record.
Ticketmaster was still offering several hundred tickets for between $150 and $1,500 late Friday and its website showed whole rows lying empty.
