The Florida State Athletic Commission has suspended John Gotti III for six months as punishment for his post-fight outburst in an exhibition boxing match against Floyd Mayweather.
Gotti III, the grandson of notorious mob boss John Gotti, momentarily ignored referee Kenny Bayless’ decision to stop the exhibition bout and continued to fight Mayweather, sparking an in-ring melee that took several minutes to contain at FLA Live Arena in Sunrise, Fla.
“The DBPR Florida Athletic Commission took immediate action the evening of Sunday, June 11, and suspended John Gotti III for six months,” wrote a spokesperson for the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, which oversees the commission.
The spokesperson added Mayweather was not sanctioned as a result of the incident. Gotti III was not immediately reachable for comment.
Gotti III and Mayweather exchanged profanities as the fight passed the halfway mark. Mayweather repeatedly taunted Gotti III, who entered the ring as a 5-1 MMA veteran and 2-0 boxing pro and was vastly overmatched against the all-time great.
Bayless admonished both fighters to keep their composure after the fifth round, but they continued to trash talk. Bayless stopped the fight after Gotti held a clinch and initially refused to break. The boxers momentarily stopped, but Gotti III pushed past Mayweather and exchanged a few punches before Mayweather’s corner and security stormed the ring.
Both fighters’ camps could be seen exchanging punches amid a swarm of people after the fight was called off. Fights broke out in the arena afterward.
On Monday, Gotti III declared Mayweather his “enemy for life” and asked Conor McGregor for help. The UFC star, who lost to Mayweather in 2017 in a blockbuster fight, declared his support. Gotti III’s relatives threatened Mayweather on social media.
