On June 6, Floyd Mayweather faced off against Logan Paul in what was one of the most-hyped sporting events of the last few years. As a fan of boxing and combat sports in general, I spent days swearing that there was no chance I would buy the Pay Per View. In an article I posted to CNW on the morning of the fight, I called the hype-fest a "blatant cash grab" and referred to anyone planning to buy the fight as a "stone cold sucker."
Then a few hours later, I bought the fight. Dammit. The hype got me.
I'm sure you've heard by now that the fight was pretty much a dud. I absolutely regret the purchase and will not be buying any future fights… I swear.
Logan took his best shot in the first 20 seconds of the first round and from that point on looked like he was on the last mile of a triathlon. Floyd did what Floyd always does. He ducked, danced and dodged. He landed precise punches that obviously hurt Logan, but never took a major swing that might lead to a knockout, which is what we all wanted and what would have made the purchase price worth it. Logan just held on for dear life until the final round.
$100 Million Prediction
In several interviews to hype the fight, Floyd Mayweather claimed he was easily going to make $100 million.
Had that happened it would have been his third-biggest career payday behind:
- Conor McGregor – $300 million
- Manny Pacquiao– $250 million
According to a number of reports, Floyd was guaranteed $10 million plus 50% of the Pay Per View profits. Logan Paul was guaranteed $250,000 and 10% of the PPV.
The Pay Per View cost $49.99.
In order for Floyd to make $100 million, 4 million stone cold suckers would have needed to buy the fight. Had that happened, Logan Paul would have earned an additional $20 million on top of his $250k guarantee.
(Photo by Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)
The Actual Numbers
A number of outlets revealed this week that the fight generated approximately 1 million Pay Per View buys. Showtime has not confirmed that number, but UFC boss Dana White basically backed it up in an interview after UFC 263.
At 1 million buys, the fight generated around $50 million in total PPV revenue.
Floyd's 50% cut would be $25 million. When combined with his $10 million guarantee, Floyd likely earned around $35 million. An amazing payday, but quite a distance from $100 million.
Logan's 10% cut would be $5 million. Giving him total earnings of $5.25 million. Again, an amazing payday… but likely also not what he had been hoping for. Will Logan, who is now 0-2 in professional boxing, ever be able to draw a PPV crowd again? What's next? I think it's over.
There are now rumblings that Floyd will take on Jake Paul. If that happens. Mark my word. I swear on all that I hold dear that I will NOT order that fight. I swear. TBD.
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