Sunday 15 February 2015

Boxing: Report, It’s Official!! Floyd Mayweather & Manny Pacquiao Sign Contract, The Mega Fight Is ON! MAY 2 2015

Two fighters finally end years of tortured negotiations by agreeing record-breaking MGM Grand date, which is likely to be May 2.

The richest match-up in boxing history between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao has finally been agreed after years of haggling.

A source close to the Filipino boxer and congressman revealed to The Sunday Telegraph that Pacquiao completed his contractual agreements on Saturday and that Mayweather is set to sign and will announce the contest which is expected to be worth $250 million (£162 million) in the coming days.
Hall of Famer Moses Malone

Mayweather was in New York on Friday, buying hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of jewellery, and there are indications that the unbeaten American boxer could even decide to announce the superfight officially at the NBA All-Star Game tip-off, which takes place on Sunday at Madison Square Garden.

“Manny has 100 per cent signed his side of the deal,” the source told Telegraph Sport. “It is now over to Mayweather to close the deal and announce the fight.” Pacquiao himself revealed Friday that he has started training in General Santos City, Philippines for his next fight.

Before his face-to-face meeting with Pacquiao last month at a basketball match in Miami, where the pair later met for an hour in the Filipino’s hotel suite, Mayweather had appeared on CBS coverage of a boxing event in December and announced that his decision was to face Pacquiao in the ring on May 2.

Through January, however, leaked comments from both sides led to claim and counter-claim over negotiations, which appeared to have stalled again.

But the meeting in Miami re-ignited the deal. Both parties agreed that MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas would be the venue of the fight.

Mayweather has had his past 10 fights there, while Pacquiao has had five of his past seven bouts there.

The fight the world has waited for, on and off for almost six years, now looks set to take place at the MGM Grand on May 2, although it is believed that there are two other dates on the table.

Behind the scenes, the talks have been complex. Top Rank chairman Bob Arum, Pacquiao’s promoter, has overseen his side of the negotiations for the bout since November last year through Leslie Moonves, the president and CEO of CBS, whose subsidiary network Showtime has two more fights left on a six-fight deal with Mayweather.

It is understood that Mayweather’s adviser, Al Haymon, has secured a 60 per cent cut of the revenue for his fighter, with Pacquiao, 36, having agreed to a 40 per cent cut.

Mayweather, unbeaten in 47 fights with 26 knockouts, who turns 38 in nine days’ time, will take his career earnings to over half a billion dollars from this contest. But the greatest risk to ‘Money’ Mayweather in this fight is the loss of his status as an unbeaten fighter.

The megafight between the pair of welterweight world champions is expected to shatter all boxing’s box-office records, including the all-time pay-per-view buy record of 2.4 million (Mayweather-Oscar De La Hoya), the pay-per-view revenue record of £100 million (Mayweather-Canelo Alvarez) and the all-time gate record of £13 million (Mayweather-Alvarez).

The teams, according to the Pacquiao side, have also agreed on the policy for the 8-ounce gloves they will wear, and have concurred on a pre and post-fight drug testing programme, the latter issue having scuppered talks in 2009, and then in 2010.

The United States Anti-Doping Agency will be assigned for random drug-testing leading into the fight, with all other matters for the bout to be overseen by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

Pacquiao is under contract with cable network HBO/Time Warner, and it understood that both broadcasters will air a joint pay-per-view event.

The rival television networks had a similar agreement when heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis fought Mike Tyson in 2002.

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Now it's official: Floyd Mayweather Jr. is fighting Filipino boxing champ and Sarangani Rep. Emmanuel "Manny" Pacquiao on May 2.

Mayweather posted on his Shots.com account a photo of the contract, where he promised they will "make history on May 2nd."

"What the world has been waiting for has arrived. Mayweather vs. Pacquiao on May 2, 2015, is a done deal. I promised the fans we would get this done, and we did," he said.

He said he and Pacquiao have signed the contract. Mayweather's post gained 22,985 likes as of 8 a.m. Saturday.

While Mayweather did not provide details, ESPN.com said the two will unify their welterweight world titles at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

ESPN quoted those familiar with the agreement as saying the contract Mayweather signed gave him the right to be the one to announce the fight.

"On Friday afternoon, Top Rank was notified and Mayweather made the announcement about an hour later," it said.

ESPN quoted Pacquiao as saying he is "very happy that Floyd Mayweather and I can give the fans the fight they have wanted for so many years."

"They have waited long enough and they deserve it. It is an honor to be part of this historic event. I dedicate this fight to all the fans who willed this fight to happen and, as always, to bring glory to the Philippines and my fellow Filipinos around the world," he added.

1 comment:

  1. Pacquiao fans check this out! Check out Manny's training here. Watch some cool Pacman training and what not on the Manny Pacquiao Video Channel .

    ReplyDelete