Mickey Bey believes Floyd Mayweather Snr is one of the most influential trainers in boxing history. At 41, Bey says Mayweather Snr’s impact is everywhere, though few acknowledge its presence.

While Bey plans to take a few more professional fights, he is now mainly focused on training – passing along the lessons he learned from Mayweather Snr though Bey clarified that he is focused on a small precise group of the fighters since he “really can’t deal with most of these guys and  it has to be the right fit and situation.”

Among his current projects is Devin Haney, the undefeated junior welterweight star who fought just once in 2024 – a no-contest against Ryan Garcia.

Bey ranks Mayweather Snr among the greatest trainers ever.

“I think Floyd is definitely one of the top, best trainers ever. Top, top, top. Definitely in the past 40 or 50 years, I’d put him number one, honestly. That’s my opinion. I respect Emanuel Steward too – I trained under him as a teenager, and he was a genius – but Floyd Snr is something else as a teacher. He’s a true genius.”

Bey detailed the contrasting styles of Steward and Mayweather Snr, emphasizing their unique strengths.

With Emanuel, I learned balance, distance, sitting down on shots – how to hurt and finish a guy,” Bey said. “Emanuel loved knockouts; he wanted the job finished. That’s that Kronk style, aggressive but smart. Floyd Snr was more drill-sergeant strict. He’d make you do everything his way, or he’d let the whole gym know you were slacking. But he taught me things no one else could – different defensive maneuvers, counters, and combinations. To this day, I remember most of them.”

Bey commented on how modern trainers mimic Mayweather Snr’s techniques without truly understanding them.

“You see it everywhere now – people mimicking Senior’s mitt work, even in movies. But they don’t give him or Roger credit. These YouTube trainers? They’re butchering it. It looks good to people who don’t know boxing, but it’s not the same. Senior’s methods were sharp, precise, and he demanded perfection.

“Boxing is life and death. You can’t just copy someone’s style without knowing the real technique. It’s like trying to fly a plane without a license. Senior’s knowledge is the real deal, and I’m just blessed to have learned from him.”

For Bey, Mayweather Snr’s influence transcends technique; it’s about a lasting legacy.

Deal follows retired boxer’s purchase of $402M rental portfolio

Just one month after Floyd Mayweather Jr. inked a record multifamily deal, the retired boxer is taking a big swing on a comeback by the office sector.

Mayweather invested in office landlord 601W Companies’ largest portfolio, a $10 billion collection of 18 buildings spanning 10 million square feet, according to a Mayweather spokesperson and Mark Karasick, a managing member of 601W.

Neither source would put a dollar figure to the deal, citing a confidentiality agreement. But a source said it is the former world champion’s “most significant” investment to date.

Mayweather previously invested over $100 million with office landlord SL Green, the source said. He has earned $1.1 billion in and out of the ring, including about $300 million from a single fight in 2015.

In October, the athlete-turned investor went into contract on a $402 million apartment portfolio owned by Black Spruce Management. The deal, which spans over 60 rental buildings, could end up being the city’s biggest this year.

Through the 601W investment, Mayweather will be an owner-partner in properties including Amazon-anchored 410 10th Avenue in Hudson Yards; the Aon Center and Old Post Office Building in Chicago; and Jersey City’s Harborside office complex — Mayweather’s favorite, according to the spokesperson.

Mayweather is betting on a post-pandemic office comeback and sees “tremendous upside” in the 601W portfolio given the landlord’s track record, the spokesperson said.

The firm, a trophy office owner with a redevelopment bent, made the bold move to expand its office footprint during Covid.

In late 2020 it paid $952 million for 410 10th Avenue, a century-old office building that seller SL Green had slated for redevelopment. The property boasted Amazon as an anchor tenant and, at the time, First Republic Bank as its second-largest with about one-third of the building.