Floyd Mayweather Jr., left, holds up the title belt next to referee Kenny Bayless after his win against Manny Pacquiao, from the Philippines, in their welterweight title fight on Saturday, May 2, 2015 in Las Vegas
The check was for USD100 million, a payday so mind boggling that Floyd Mayweather Jr. couldn’t help but show it to a few reporters when the night was done.
“No pictures, though,” Mayweather said, sliding the check out of an envelope. “Don’t want any pictures of it.”
The check will soon be cashed, adding to the millions Mayweather already has stashed in his bank accounts. It was actually just a down payment for his night’s work, which could total more than $200 million by the time pay-per-view sales are tallied up.
The richest fight ever wasn’t the best fight ever, but that wasn’t entirely Mayweather’s fault. He did what he usually does Saturday night against Manny Pacquiao in a win that cemented his legacy as the best of his generation, even if he didn’t win any new fans doing it.
Still, the fight will be a tough act to follow if only because of the staggering money it brought in. Hard to imagine Mayweather fighting for a paltry $30 million or $40 million after a night he made history with the richest single payday any athlete of any sport has made.
He says he’ll fight once more in September, then hang up the gloves. Mayweather says it’s time to enjoy the fruits of his labor from a sport that has consumed his life since he was a kid throwing punches in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
“I don’t really think I’ll miss the sport,” Mayweather said. “I don’t even watch boxing. At one particular time I loved the sport of boxing. I wanted to go to every fight and wanted to be at every boxing event. But I just lost the love for the sport.”
Before a well-heeled crowd of 16,507 that cheered every time Pacquiao threw a punch, Mayweather dominated late once again to pull out a decision win that seemed closer in the ring than it did on the scorecards. Pacquiao even thought he won, though punch stats showed Mayweather landing far more punches and even throwing more than the usually frenetic Filipino.
Pacquiao would blame a shoulder injury suffered in training last month for not being able to throw more right hands. His handlers would blame Nevada boxing officials for not allowing him a shot to numb the shoulder just before the fight, though the excuse rang hollow.
“I cannot use a lot of my right hand but the fight was still good,” Pacquiao said.
Pacquiao’s trainer, Freddie Roach, said his fighter would like a rematch, but there is little chance of that. Not with Pacquiao’s shoulder injury, and certainly not after the perfect financial storm of a fight that cannot be replicated.
Pacquiao likely made $100 million himself for the fight that packed the MGM Grand arena with celebrities, sports stars and people paying as much as $40,000 for ringside seats. The bout was delayed for about a half hour because pay-per-view sales were overwhelming cable and satellite systems, a good omen for the paydays of both fighters.
But while Pacquiao was the crowd favorite, Mayweather was the masterful boxer. He may not have ended the career of the remarkable career of the Filipino who once sold doughnuts on the streets to survive, but it’s doubtful Pacquiao can continue as a big pay-per-view much longer. Tim Dahlberg, Boxing Writer, Las Vegas, AP
No Comments