Let’s finally be honest here, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao's battle on May 2 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas was everything but epic. The Fight of the Century will be remembered as the Fiasco of the Century.
This fight let boxing fans feeling gouged, and excluded.
lest´s just remember how screwed up everything was, it was a bad fight, it did more harm than good for boxing.
Mayweather-Pacquiao was destined to be the highest-grossing fight ever, potentially generating between $300 million and $400 million. It wasn’t expected to be the greediest and most unorganized. As fight week arrived on Monday, a sport that was carried in recent years by hardcore fans and Internet bloggers has turned its back on those very supporters in the chase for every dollar.
If waiting until the week before the fight to put 500 tickets on sale to the general public weren’t insulting enough, hotel rooms in Las Vegas, going for $400 to $900 a night and up. Closed-circuit tickets, unless well connected through a hotel host, cost $300 to $400. Try getting a last-minute flight, if you were lucky enough to get a fight ticket, and the cost from Newark is more than $900.
Confirmations of media credentials weren't issued until the last week and offered no promise the holder would be seated in the arena for the fight.
And the traditional Grand Arrival ceremony on Tuesday was lame full of screams and noise instead of a real quality promotion because, according to his promoter, Bob Arum, “We can do without all the hoopla.”
Though the unprecedented $10 charge for Friday’s weigh-in is being earmarked for charity, the secondary market for those tickets reached triple figures. Presumably, the Grand Garden Arena was sold out on Saturday night with those who can afford tickets averaging $10,000.
Mayweather and Pacquiao delivered a lame boring bout, with no need for discussion of a rematch. Since it was a boring exhibition of shadow boxing, and the judging appeared biased (assuming Paquiao won the bout), it let fans angry, unfulfilled and feeling cheated.
“We all waited for something good, something that’s final, something that makes the wait worthwhile, it didn´t happen” longtime boxing analyst Larry Merchant said.
Perhaps it was inevitable Mayweather-Pacquiao was a rocky production. Mayweather waited until February to agree to the bout, leaving less than three months to plan an event that normally would have taken five months to prepare. The parties don’t exactly get along. Rivals HBO and Showtime are partnering on the pay-per-view production.
Pacquiao’s promoter, Top Rank, and the MGM Grand aren’t on good terms stemming from the casino’s promotion of a Mayweather bout when Pacquiao was fighting Tim Bradley.
Arum and Mayweather’s adviser, Al Haymon, aren't exactly friends, and Mayweather Promotions acted as the lead promoter in its first mega-event. Unsigned contracts and squabbles over ticket allotments have led to endless finger-pointing, with blame assigned to Arum, Haymon or the MGM, depending on whom you choose to believe.
“It’s a tough collection of issues,” said Ken Hershman, president of HBO Sports.
In many ways, this is uncharted territory. The late announcement of the fight, the limited number of tickets, a $300 charge for closed-circuit viewing, and a $100 pay-per-view price point tested the market for a real and final disappointment.
Boxing fans just realized it wasn't money well spent, and probably Mayweather and Pacquiao are just laughing together behind closed doors.
As for me I would stick for some real MMA by watching the UFC and some cards that are more real than all the money made in this lame boxing match.
