Floyd Mayweather’s pay-per-view fight generated record numbers when he faced Canelo Alvarez in September 2013. He’s fought two more times since then, but much to his and Showtime’s disappointment, his numbers have not been up to his standards.
When he fought Marcos Maidana last May, Mayweather looked slow and quite stationary for the first six rounds, which allowed Maidana to use his rough and maul tactics to his advantage. However, the latter rounds of the fight told the same tale that every fan is so familiar with by now: jab, jab, slide away from the ropes, jab, right, back to the center of the ring. Nobody expected Maidana to put Mayweather on the ropes, let alone land over 200 punches. Questions of Mayweather’s age and legs arose, and Maidana was given yet another shot at the title.
Even though Mayweather had done everything to sell the Maidana fight, it still failed to attract any audience. The fight was fairly one-sided, with Mayweather landing the more clean and precise punches. But there were some key moments where Maidana wobbled Mayweather. At the end of the day, Maidana looked like he had come from a baby shower, while Mayweather had marks of war on his face.
Controversy is never far away from Mayweather, and once again, he made headlines. During Showtime’s All Access reality show, Mayweather was with some of his crew when they were smoking marijuana—although Mayweather wasn’t seen directly participating in the act. For a fighter, any drug in the bloodstream can be career threatening, but to Mayweather it is a “lifestyle.” Other fighters who are in Mayweather’s stable, such as J.Love, have tested positive. Mayweather himself has failed the test twice in the past.
The Nevada State Commission wasn’t particularly satisfied with his antics, along with his “dog-house” rules, which threatened the safety of other fighters. When summoned by the commission, Mayweather claimed that All Access was orchestrated—a direct stab at Showtime’s credibility.
With Mayweather’s six-fight deal coming to a close, Showtime will be pushing him to take risks. A fight with Pacquiao seems highly unlikely, and there are not many other credible opponents for him. Mayweather is truly checkmated this time, and it would be difficult for him to find a way to not fight a worthy opponent.
So where does Cinco De Mayo come into play?
Business is inseparable from boxing. Networks like Showtime and HBO want fighters who produce quality PPV numbers. For the past decade, Mayweather has been the king of PPV, and thus has had the luxury of performing on Mexican holidays. A large majority of the boxing audience is Mexican, so it makes sense to set a PPV fight on Cinco De Mayo. Canelo Alvarez, a popular Mexican fighter, has asked Oscar to challenge Mayweather for those dates.
For Canelo to get the dates that he wants, he would need to have big fights, thus the reason for his switch from Showtime to HBO. Canelo is hoping for a fight with Cotto in 2015—the only fight that would force Mayweather to think outside the box. It is unlikely that Pacquiao and Canelo will face each other in the ring, for Canelo would have to drain himself to even come close to 150 pounds. It remains to be seen whether Canelo will get those coveted dates from Mayweather. The chance for a Canelo vs. Cotto match on Cinco De Mayo is very unlikely, but it is not improbable—much like a fight between Mayweather and Pacquiao that seems to be coming to fruition.
Cover photo by Supermac1961 via Flickr. Some rights reserved.
