Floyd Mayweather is synonymous with the sport of boxing. He can be quite a controversial figure, with some boxing fans not giving him the flowers that others feel he deserves. Nonetheless, his unblemished 50-0 professional record is unmatched in boxing history.
Throughout his storied career, he tangled with some of the biggest names in the sport. He opened the door to some rising stars who have gone on to become household names. He drew the curtain on the careers of some of the giants of yesteryear. He clashed with the very best.
However, what most came to define Floyd 'Money' Mayweather was just that, money. His legacy is largely related to his ability to make money in the business of boxing. His ability to draw the biggest gates and pay-per-view sales made him a promoter's and broadcaster's dream. Here are the top five biggest-selling Floyd Mayweather pay-per-views of all time.
5. vs Miguel Cotto (May 2012)
Mayweather's clash with Puerto Rican sensation was a battle of two of the behemoths of the sport in the early 2000s. It drew significant media interest and generated a great deal of hype.
This could arguably be described as the moment when Floyd began his march towards the end of his career, fighting a who's who of fighters on his way to retiring undefeated. Cotto had some moments in this one but Floyd ended up securing a unanimous decision victory in style at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The fight brought in 1.5 million pay-per-view buys on HBO and generated some $94m in overall revenue - not a bad night at the office for Floyd.
4. vs Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez (September 2013)
Not long after conquering Cotto, Floyd would win another huge box office smash. His highly-anticipated clash with the emerging Mexican sensation 'Canelo' sold 2.2m buys on Showtime and earned benefactors over $150m overall.
At this point in his career, Floyd was the top dog and the major draw in this one. Canelo was a future superstar with a considerable amount of hype, but the heavy lifting was mostly done by Floyd. Fans were tuning in to see the master at work or in the hopes of seeing Canelo knock him off his throne.
Despite putting in a valiant display, Floyd's famed and oft-derided defence reigned supreme here. Canelo struggled to lay hands on Mayweather as he recorded a dominant majority decision over the Guadalajara native.
3.vs Oscar De La Hoya (May 2007)
Described as an instant classic, this fight against Oscar De La Hoya was probably the first 'megafight' of Floyd's career, selling 2.4m buys on HBO and earning $136m in overall revenue.
It must be said that Oscar likely contributed more than Mayweather to these sales. In 2007, Floyd was still on the rise as the young lion and Oscar was the established box office draw. This is not to suggest that Mayweather didn't generate his share of hype, which he of course did, but Oscar was the big dog.
However, Floyd's quickness and agility won the day, putting the young superstar over the top and turning him into a household name overnight.
Up to this point, Mayweather vs De La Hoya was the most lucrative fight in the history of boxing. Mayweather earned $25m for his efforts, while De La Hoya pocketed more than $50m, the highest purse ever paid to a boxer at that point. This discrepancy in pay symbolises the gulf in popularity between the two heading into the fight, something which would surely in the years to come.
2. vs Conor McGregor (August 2017)
It was shades of Muhammad Ali in 2017 as a veteran Floyd played the rope-a-dope game for the first half of his earth-shattering fight with UFC double champion Conor McGregor, allowing the Irishman to seemingly get off a bunch of effective offence, before coming on strong in the later rounds and turning the screw and finishing him off in the 10th.
'MayMac', sold 4.3m pay-per-views on Showtime and made $307m total. It is, and will likely remain for some time, one of the biggest and most highly-anticipated sporting events in history.
With this most classy of victories, Floyd extended his undefeated streak to 50 victories, overtaking the late great Rocky Marciano's 49-0 record, and hung up the gloves. He participates in the odd exhibition bout here and there, but this was the last time Floyd stepped into the squared circle professionally. Doing justice to his moniker, he went out making an obscene amount of money.
1. vs Manny Pacquiao (May 2015)
Despite the immeasurable hype attached to the fight with McGregor and the media circus which surrounded it, Floyd's most lucrative fight, and the best-selling boxing pay-per-view of all time, remains his clash with Filipino legend Manny Pacquiao.
Billed the 'Fight of the Century', this coming together of two of the most skilled boxers ever to lace up the gloves sold 4.6m pay-per-views on HBO/Showtime and earned stakeholders a whopping $400m in revenue.
Despite many feeling that this fight did not live up to its billing as 'Fight of the Century', due to a host of factors, many fans are still clamouring to see the rematch. With Floyd vs Manny 2 said to be on the cards for this year, this record could yet be broken.
