Mayweather turned in a
vintage performance as he outboxed Manny Pacquiao in a brilliant display to win
a unanimous decision in one of the biggest fights in boxing history before a
sold-out and star-studded crowd of 16,507 on Saturday night at the MGM Grand
Garden Arena.
Judge Dave Moretti scored the
fight 118-110, and judges Glenn Feldman and Burt Clements both had it 116-112 for
Mayweather, who remains undefeated at 48-0.
The massively hyped fight, more than five years in the making,
became a global event. While it was not the drama-filled battle many had hoped
for, it was an impressive performance from Mayweather, the master boxer, who
never allowed the more powerful Pacquiao to deliver any truly big punches as he
pulled away in the second half of the fight.
Mayweather, who had many harsh words for Pacquiao over the years
before the fight was finally signed in February, was gracious in victory.
"He's a hell of a fighter. I take my hat off to Manny
Pacquiao," Mayweather said. "Now I see why he's one of the guys at the
pinnacle."
There was so much on the line for the fighters, as Mayweather,
already a five-division champion, laid claim to Pacquiao's 147-pound world
title (in addition to the two he already owned at welterweight) and left no
doubt as to the identity of the No.1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world.
More significantly, Mayweather won the legacy fight, stamping
himself as the best fighter of an era he and Pacquiao have shared and
dominated. During their great runs, they both won numerous world titles and beat
five common opponents, all likely Hall of Famers, in Oscar De La Hoya (already
inducted), Miguel Cotto, Ricky Hatton, Juan Manuel Marquez and Shane Mosley.
Perhaps
history will not record it as a great fight, but it will go down as the
richest. It generated a live gate of approximately $74 million, and the pay-per-view television audience -- at about $100 per buy -- is expected to shatter the
pay-per-view buy record (2.48 million) and pay-per-view revenue record ($150
million) set by previous Mayweather fights. In all, organizers expect the fight
to generate some $400 million, and it was so big that it brought together rival
networks HBO, which has Pacquiao under contract, and Showtime, Mayweather's
broadcast home.
Mayweather, already the highest-paid athlete in the world in
recent years, is expected to earn an estimated $180 million from the fight and
Pacquiao around $120 million.
Money aside, the competitive juices still flowed through both.
Mayweather had said before the fight, "I never wanted to win a fight so
bad in my life."
After the fight, he said, "I knew he was going to push and
win some rounds. He had some moments, but I kept him on the outside. I didn't
get hit with a lot of shots, unless I stood in the pocket. I'm a calculating
fighter, but he's a tough competitor.
"My dad [trainer Floyd Mayweather Sr.] wanted me to do
more, but Pacquiao is a tough competitor and an awkward fighter."
Pacquiao thought he should have gotten the decision.
"It's a good fight. I thought I won the fight," he
said. "He didn't do anything. He moved outside. I got him many more times
with a lot of punches, and I thought I won the fight; I was never hurt. I was
very surprised at the scores."
Pacquiao
also said after the fight that he injured his right shoulder in
training, and his camp said Nevada boxing commissioners denied a request for
him to take an anti-inflammatory shot in his dressing room before facing off
with Mayweather.
|
Punch
Stats
|
||
|
PUNCHES
|
MAYWEATHER
|
PACQUIAO
|
|
Landed
|
148
|
81
|
|
Thrown
|
435
|
429
|
|
Pct.
|
34%
|
19%
|
For the fight, Mayweather landed
148 of 435 punches (34 percent) while Pacquiao suffered through one of his
worst offensive performances, connecting on just 81 of 429 blows for a paltry
19 percent against one of boxing's all-time great defensive fighters.
Mayweather, despite the massive windfall of money, said he
intends to fight again in the fall in what would be the final fight of the
six-fight contract he signed with Showtime/CBS in 2013.
"I'm fighting in September, yes," the 38-year-old
Mayweather said, although who he will face is a mystery. "I got one more
fight with Showtime/CBS. You guys have done a remarkable job. My last fight is
in September."
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