Floyd Mayweather says he’s ‘very interested’ in buying Clippers

Reporting from Las Vegas — Boxer Floyd Mayweather, who in 2012 was recognized by Forbes magazine as the highest-paid athlete in sports, says he wants to buy the Los Angeles Clippers.

Mayweather, preparing for Saturday night’s pay-per-view fight against Marcos Maidana, said Tuesday that he has been talking with “a couple of my billionaire guys” about forming a group to buy the team. He earned $85 million in 2012 and is projected to earn $90 million this year.

“It’s not just talk,” he said of buying the Clippers. “I want to do it.”

Mayweather, famous for placing huge wagers on sporting events, acknowledged that owning an NBA franchise would mean he’d have to change his Las Vegas lifestyle.

“Once I get ownership of the Clippers, I can no longer bet,” he said. “The sports book, I’d have to stop that completely.”

When he’s not fighting, he frequently attends Clippers and Lakers games, and said he’s close friends with Kobe Bryant.

“I’m always talking trash to the players,” Mayweather said. “It’s fun to go to the game and talk trash to the players. … But we do want to buy the Clippers, me and my team, and we can afford the Clippers.

“With me, I can’t come in and talk about Mayweather can only get 3%, 4%. I’ve got to get a solid percentage. Do we want to buy the Clippers? Yes, we do. We’re very, very interested in buying the Clippers.”