By John F. McKenna (McJack): Undefeated superstar WBC welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. (42-0, 26 KO’s) finds himself in a predicament after being offered a 70 – 30 split by Filipino icon WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao (54-3-2, 38 KO’s). With the estimated combined revenue from the live gate and Pay Per View (PPV) sales being in the range of $200 million a Mayweather – Pacquiao fight would easily be the hugest fight in financial terms in boxing history.
Floyd initially offered Manny a flat $40 million with the proviso that he keep the lucrative PPV revenue. It is estimated that the PPV revenue would be in the range of $160 million. $40 million is indeed a lot of money, but when you take into account that Floyd would keep the lion’s share for himself, it is really a ridiculous offer. Pacquiao realizing what Mayweather was up to said that the offer was embarrassing.
The Pacquiao camp countered Mayweather’s $40 million offer with a $50 million offer to Floyd and a 50 – 50 split of the PPV revenue. Mayweather turned that offer down.
Pacquiao by offering a 70 – 30 split with 70% going to the winner, demonstrated how serious he is about getting Floyd into the ring before he retires. The 70 – 30 split also shows how confident “Pacman” is of defeating Floyd.
So the question that begs to be asked of Mayweather is, why not take the biggest “Money” deal in boxing history?
But with Mayweather it is more than the amount of money he would make in a match with Pacquiao. It is partly about the perception of Floyd being the top pound for pound fighter in the world. Of course the importance of the “0” on Mayweather’s record cannot be overstated and now influences the choice of every opponent he faces in the ring.
Manny has successfully painted Floyd into a corner. Mayweather’s continual assertions that Manny is not in the same league as him will be difficult even for Mayweather’s own followers to swallow. Floyd is also quick to claim that he does not need Pacquiao to bring in the millions of dollars he earns for each of his fights. The reality is however Pacquiao has been outdistancing Mayweather in both PPV and live gate revenue for his last three fights. It is also a cold hard fact that Floyd would earn far more money with Manny in the opposite corner of the ring than anybody else he fights. Mayweather’s reasoning for not fighting Pacquiao just does not hold up to scrutiny.
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