Mayweather-Costas interview covers Pacquiao, family, and more

Floyd Mayweather Jr. appeared on Thursday's edition of Costas Tonight, during which the conversation with host Bob Costas covered a range of topics.

Mayweather described his father as being "jealous" of his uncle and trainer, Roger Mayweather, addressed his perceived racial comments regarding NBA guard Jeremy Lin of the New York Knicks, and claimed it was he, not his pound-for-pound rival, Manny Pacquiao, who made the most recent attempt to make their potential megabout a reality.

Click here for the full interview.

"If the fight happens, it do. Do I want the fight to happen? Absolutely. But if it don't, so be it," said Mayweather, whom Costas pressed about Pacquiao, and wondered how the failure to make the fight reflected on him compared to past champions.

"I basically see what you're getting to. Larry Holmes lived the way that he lived. He's lost to who he has lost to. Sugar Ray Robinson has lost to who he has lost to. But I'm the game to win, not just in the ring, but outside of the ring. And my health is more important to anything."

At one point, Costas asked Mayweather "are you implying that you have something to fear from Pacquiao?"

"I don't fear no man," replied Mayweather. "I don't fear nothing. If you are insinuating that I'm a scared fighter, then why would people want to even watch a scared fighter?"

He added that he thought Pacquiao lost his last fight, November's disputed majority decision victory in defense of his WBO welterweight belt against RING lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez, against whom Pacquiao had battled through a draw and a split-decision win previously.

Mayweather (42-0, 26 knockouts) also said he has no fear of losing to WBA junior middleweight beltholder Miguel Cotto (37-2, 30 KOs), against whom he will pursue his eighth title belt over five weight classes on May 5 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Near the end of the interview, Costas posted Mayweather's Twitter comment about Lin, which implied that it was Lin's Asian heritage as much as his play that was catching the world by storm, drawing more attention to him when African Americans in the league are doing the same thing.

"It's okay for Cuba to root for Cubans, Puerto Ricans to root for Puerto Ricans," said Mayweather. "But if I speak on certain situations, then he's racist."

Mayweather also spoke about the infamous obscenity-laced altercation with his father and one-time trainer, Floyd Mayweather Sr., whose boxing career Floyd Jr. denigrated as being made up of victories primarily over "cab drivers."

"I think that it's just jealousy on my father. I'm everything in the sport of boxing that he wasn't. I think that by now, he expected me to have taken a loss without him," said Mayweather, who is trained by his uncle, Roger Mayweather.