Floyd Mayweather-Miguel Cotto fight sells 1.5 million on PPV, sixth-highest ever
The huge pay-per-view numbers that Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer was anticipating for the Floyd Mayweather-Miguel Cotto fight came in on Friday. HBO announced that the May 5 bout at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas, which Mayweather won by unanimous decision, sold 1.5 million pay-per-view units and generated $94 million in pay-per-view revenue.
That makes it the second-biggest non-heavyweight fight of all-time, behind only the 2007 match between Mayweather and Oscar De La Hoya, which did 2.5 million. It is also the sixth largest boxing pay-per-view ever.
The Mayweather-De La Hoya bout sold 2.5 million pay-per-view units and generated $137 million in revenue, according to HBO.
The top pay-per-view bouts ever, according to research by Yahoo! Sports:
1. Floyd Mayweather-Oscar De La Hoya, May 5, 2007, Las Vegas, 2.5 million
2. Mike Tyson-Lennox Lewis, June 8, 2002, Memphis, Tenn. 1.98 million
3. Mike Tyson-Evander Holyfield II, June 28, 1997, Las Vegas, 1.98 million
4. Mike Tyson-Evander Holyfield I, Nov. 9, 1996, Las Vegas, 1.59 million
5. Mike Tyson-Peter McNeeley, Aug. 19, 1995, Las Vegas, 1.55 million
6. Floyd Mayweather-Miguel Cotto, May 5, 2012, Las Vegas, 1.5 million
The $94 million generated by Mayweather-Cotto is fourth all-time. It trails Mayweather-De La Hoya ($137 million); Tyson-Holyfield II ($110.8 million); and Tyson-Holyfield I ($100 million).
The replay of Mayweather-Cotto, along with the rebroadcast of Canelo Alvarez's win over Shane Mosley, will be on HBO on Saturday at 7:15 p.m. Eastern and Pacific.
