BY GABRIEL PRINCEWILL
The biggest and richest fight in boxing history has finally been announced to take place on May 2 in Las Vegas.
Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquao will finally face each other in a long awaited mouth watering showdown sure to capture the imagination of untold millions round the globe. After five years of talking, waffling, and negotiating of sorts, the boxing world and the viewing public will be treated to a fight which has been held off for too long.
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Money Mayweather, the genius of boxing, announced on twitter a few days back ” Mayweather v Pacquiao on May 2, 2015 is a done deal. I promised the fans I will get the deal done and we did. We will make history on May 2nd, don’t miss it. I am glad my decision to meet with Manny and discuss making this fight helped get the deal done. Giving the fans what they want to see is always my real focus. This will be the biggest event in the history of the sport. Boxing fans and sport fans around the world will witness greatness on May 2”
Always a great talker, Mayweather blends rhetoric with delivery very nicely. His resume is as impressive as the ingenious way he has disposed of 47 other opponents- many of them elite fighters. Yet, the protracted negotiations that has delayed this fight for so long does not really bode well for the legacy he purports to have. ”I am the best ever TBE , he boasts, and this fight will be another opportunity to showcase my skills and do what I do best, which is win. Manny is going to do what 47 before him have failed to do, but he will not be successful. He will be no 48”.
Most boxing experts and even casual fight fans know this fight should have happened at least five years ago when Pacquio – a former multi weight champion was in his prime. Instead Mayweather- a natural marketer- insisted on drug testing before a fight could be staged. His request was not unreasonable because Pacquio looked so phenomenal, it was hardly inconceivable that he could be using banned substances to enhance his capability. However, once Pacquio agreed to the drug testing, the fight should have happened. It seems Mayweather successfully avoided fighting Pacquio when he was at his most dangerous, and is happy to meet him now after he has had three losses. Pacquio remains a dangerous opponent despite the losses.
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The fight is most welcome to the world, but it has come late. Britain’s Amir Khan will not welcome the fight with a smile, because he has been pushing to get this fight with Mayweather. Khan is undoubtedly faster than anybody Mayweather has faced, and still in his prime. He would have been a dangerous underdog for Mayweather, but the smart American would rather Pacquio who is now declining but will undoubtedly generated several millions more than Khan would at this time. Talk about taking less risk for a lot more money. After all, Mayweather can fight Khan down the line if some of Khan’s rivals have not obliterated him from the scene. Maweather is a smart operator.
President of HBO sport, Ken Hershman added ”Manny Pacquio and Floyd Mayweather have been the two most prominent fighters in the sport of boxing for the past decade, and fight fans around the world have been clamouring for them to face each other. This is a signature moment for the sport of boxing and HBO sports is thrilled to be a part of this spectacular event. The purse for the fight is surmised to be in excess of £100 million, and likely to eclipse mega fights in past times, including the £50m purse for Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield in the late 90’s, and anything that the greatest of all-Mohammed Ali generated in the glory days era of boxing in the 70’s.
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