Once his jail sentence is complete, Floyd Mayweather will be ready to compete inside the boxing ring. The undefeated fighter doesn't have many options for quality opponents at this point in his career, but that doesn't mean he won't take on a lesser-known fighter just for a huge payday. Who are the three best candidates to fight "Money" when his time to fight comes again?
Victor Ortiz
These two men fought in 2011 and Mayweather picked up the controversial victory after referee Joe Cortez didn't properly protect the fighters. Since that fight, Ortiz hasn't fought again and despite the feeling that he was outclassed by Mayweather in that fight, the rematch might be able to draw enough attention from the boxing world to attract pay-per-view buys.
Timothy Bradley
Another undefeated fighter, Bradley is the new WBO welterweight champion after picking up the split decision victory against Manny Pacquiao. Most people who watched that fight thought that Bradley lost, but since he is the champion and is the first man to have a win against Pacquiao since 2005, he is a perfect candidate to fight Mayweather. Bradley has great hands and moves around well, but he has never fought anyone with the speed of Mayweather. When it comes to the weight class, nobody, not even Pacquiao, is faster than Mayweather.
Manny Pacquiao
Ortiz and Bradley are two likely challengers, but it is the potential dream fight that the fans want to see and the sport needs to see to remain relevant in the American sports world. After the controversial decision loss to Bradley, some have thought that retirement would be the best option for the Filipino-born fighter, but I don't see him retiring with a loss on his record, especially one in that manner.
A rematch with Bradley would be nice for Pacquiao so he can prove he is the better fighter again, but it is the fight with Mayweather that would decide who the greatest fighter in this era was. Boxing fans have long-wanted a fight of between these two men to settle who is the best in the sport today.
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Hobson Lopes has been a lifelong fan of boxing and can be followed on Twitter @HobsonLopes .
