By Rich Mancuso
Come on Floyd Mayweather Jr. do the right thing for the sport and get in the ring with Manny Pacquiao. Because the pay-per-view numbers from his September 17th WBC welterweight title fight with Victor Ortiz recorded the second highest non-heavyweight pay-per-view gross earnings in boxing history, the demand is for Mayweather.
The asking price is not only the purse that Mayweather may command. The request comes from fans that did not get a good outcome with the championship win over Ortiz, but Mayweather once again is a pay-per-view commodity and it showed after a 16-month hiatus. The fight generated over $78,440,000 in PPV revenue and was seen in 1.25 million homes. And this was not Mayweather-Pacquiao that will have no problem exceeding all boxing PPV records.
So when Mayweather says, “I give the fans everything I have with the best competition and exciting fights,” that leads to speculation. Why is he not in the ring with Pacquiao? We may never know. And perhaps this latest Pay-per-view number, and promoter Bob Arum earlier this week berating Mayweather, will get the undefeated welterweight champion to make the fight a reality.
But Mayweather will command his own show. Pay-per-view numbers and records are good for his ego and financial well-being. The fight with Manny Pacquiao is what fans and the sport, are desperate to see. However, boxing fans and the sport should not depend on a Mayweather meeting with Pacquiao for a revival. Mayweather would prefer meeting Victor Ortiz again, and Pacquiao is in the discussion for meeting undefeated Mike Jones or Diamond Belt middleweight champion Sergio Martinez with the assumption he will prevail in his third fight with Juan Manuel Marquez in two weeks.
Ortiz is enjoying the lifestyle after his fiasco ending of the fight last month. Boxing, right now, is not an emphasis though his thoughts are meeting Mayweather again knowing that the fight brought in good numbers. Ortiz has been avoiding calls and text messages from the media for comment. Through his promoters at Golden Boy, Richard Schaefer, the CEO in particular, the attitude is Mayweather controls the sport when it comes to pay-per-view. And Ortiz is leaving the next step to Schaefer.
When reached for comment, Schaefer said nothing different from a press statement that was released to the media about the PPV numbers from the Ortiz fight. There was no indication about Golden Boy involvement for a possible Mayweather-Ortiz second bout, or any indication that Golden Boy would be a factor in convincing Mayweather that it is time to make the fight with Pacquiao.
“When it comes to pay-per-view Floyd is clearly in a league of his own,” said Schaefer in a statement.” So there are no doubts that Schaefer will be a factor in trying to get the deal done this time for Mayweather, though Floyd is capable of conducting his own business, with legal issues still an obstacle as to what the next step will be for the WBC welterweight champion.
And as time passes by, with Pacquiao keeping busy, the anticipated fight that never comes to fruition is still a topic of discussion. We continue to write, speculate, and offer a prediction. In the end a final conclusion comes from the pay-per-view numbers.
Floyd Mayweather Jr. is the reigning king of boxing pay-per-view numbers and revenue from the fans who believe he is the draw. It is nonsense to believe that Mayweather is avoiding Manny Pacquiao. But as the days pass, it becomes more inevitable that the mega fight will never happen, and that Mayweather is afraid and does not want to tarnish his image with a possible loss to his adversary.
Schaefer said, “Records are made to be broken.” Meaning he is advocating the fight with all assurances that Mayweather-Pacquiao will exceed all previous PPV numbers. So the pay-per-view numbers dictate, that the boxing fan continues to have confidence with a Mayweather theory that he generates interest in the sport.
And in the best interest for all, Floyd, take another look at the numbers and make the fight with Manny Pacquiao a reality.
Email Rich Mancuso: Ring786@aol.com
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