Sometimes, when you’ve wanted something to happen for so long, it can often end in disappointment.
That was the case when Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao finally went head-to-head against each other in May 2015.
It was a bout that was years in the making after the two had gone back and forth, but in the end it was Mayweather who won.
Mayweather revealed he didn’t fight Pacquiao in his prime as the two were unable to agree on a 50/50 purse split.
Fight night itself may have been an anti-climax, but the numbers from the long-awaited bout more than made up for it.
Mayweather vs Pacquiao was the richest fight of all time
Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul is the biggest US combat sports gate of all time but before Tyson vs Paul was Mayweather vs Pacquiao.
It was the fight that everyone wanted to see and in the end managed to generate $600m and 4.6m pay-per-views which, at the time, was a record.
Ringside seats that night were almost $180,000 and even the cheapest tickets were in the $1,500 and $7,500 ballpark.
When the two met, ‘Money’ was the pound-for-pound number one whilst Pacquaio was, and is still, regarded as one of the best featherweight boxers of all time.
Mayweather retained his WBC and WBA world welterweight titles, and took Pacquiao’s WBO belt, with the 118-110, 116-112, 116-112 unanimous decision.
How Floyd Mayweather earned $4m payday thanks to Many Pacquaio error
Both fighters managed to secure huge windfalls from their battle in the ring, but Mayweather believes he came out on top thanks to what he claims was a fatal error from Pacquiao.
As the challenger, Pacquiao pocketed $120m whereas Mayweather earned an eye-watering $180m.
Their paydays didn’t stop there as talks of an exhibition match between the two as the years went on continued to rumble on in the background.
They met in Tokyo in 2023 where talks went underway and Pacquiao publicly claimed that a fight against Mayweather could happen.
However, Mayweather revealed in February 2024 that by not keeping quiet, Pacquiao had given the American the easiest $4m he’ll ever earn.
He told the Pivot podcast: “When Manny Pacquiao spoke about that [a rematch], he shouldn’t have.
“I’m not gonna say he’s right and I’m not gonna say he’s wrong. Just by him saying my name they gave me a cheque for $4 million.
He said my name when he wasn’t supposed to. I said, there’s a time and a place for everything.
“But remember – he got famous because they said he could the guy who could possibly dethrone the king.
“Did it happen? Absolutely not. Was it easy? Absolutely.”
Talks may have been leaked but nothing ever came out of it and Pacquiao will probably keep quiet when mentioning his former opponent from now on.