Floyd Mayweather has said recently, more than once, that the main reason his fight with Manny Pacquiao hasn’t happened is money. Simple as that. But in a recent interview on NBC with Bob Costas, Mayweather spoke about health and life after boxing, maybe showing a different side to the never ending saga.

Mayweather has Miguel Cotto on his mind, but the Pacquiao fight is always hovering above, a pesky fly that won’t go away. Mayweather, intentionally or not, goes back to it each and every time. He spoke on tour and spoke on TV about it. The split, the 50-50 split is just not something that’s remotely close to being reasonable for him. Pacquiao wants 50-50, or 45-45, whatever it is, according rumors. Mayweather wants to keep 100% of the PPV revenues.

Trying to decipher Floyd Mayweather is vexing. The man puts on a great show of a villain who doesn’t care about anyone or what anyone think of him. When he says it’s all about self preservation, you believe him. The man has put himself, through his enormous boxing talent, as one of the highest paid athletes in the world. He’ll live if he won’t fight Pacquiao, he’ll sell at least 1 million PPV against anyone at the moment. After coming back from jail? Maybe more.

But to think Mayweather doesn’t care about the general opinion? To see him in interviews or after fights, especially after the Victor Ortiz fight, tells part of the story. Having a father that has been envious of his achievements helps you complete the picture. Mayweather’s love for gambling, and the love of flaunting his wins on twitter, gambling wins. Actually, his twitter account is mostly cashing in on basketball bets, which is probably pretty fun for 2.5 million followers.

Mayweather wants recognition as the greatest ever, or one of them. Part of the biggest fight in history in terms of money made off PPV? He’s already got that with Oscar De La Hoya. A fight with Manny Pacquiao in the next 18-20 months will beat that. After that? I’m not so sure. If one of them loses on the way? I’m not so sure either. Does Miguel Cotto pose a risk? Yes, but a very calculated one.

As a boxer, Mayweather is pretty much perfect. Not just because of being undefeated, but because he hardly gets touched. His CompuBox numbers are off the charts, the best in history in terms of +/-. He doesn’t have incredible, legendary kind of power, but he punishes for every mistake, is patient when needs to be and comes up with the perfect game plan each and every time. Is it the most exciting style to see? No. But the persona Mayweather has created does that for him.

So is he afraid of Manny Pacquiao? Does he see him as such an issue? Partially, yes. Miguel Cotto is a very good example of that. He took a severe beating from him and a cheating (allegedly) Margarito. I don’t think he’s ever been the same. Mayweather picked an opponent with a big name and a big PPV drawability, but even at 154, I just don’t see Cotto beating a well prepared Floyd.

Pacquiao? Maybe we’ll never know. Mayweather and Pacquiao, each for his own reasons, if you wanna stay neutral, is holding out on us. But I do believe the ball is mostly in Mayweather’s corner, who still hasn’t made up his mind about wanting to risk more than just his undefeated record against Manny Pacquiao.