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Home / Sport / Boxing

Mayweather and Pacquiao fight in just 11 days... so, why have no tickets been sold yet?

Daily Mail
21 Apr, 2015 10:11 PM4 mins to read

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Floyd Mayweather takes on Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas on May 2. Photo / AP.

Floyd Mayweather takes on Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas on May 2. Photo / AP.

When Floyd Mayweather posted a picture of a signed contract for his $300 million mega-fight against Manny Pacquiao two months ago, there was a collective sigh of relief.

After more than five years of wrangling and bickering, the richest fight in boxing history was finally set for May 2 in Las Vegas.

But with 11 days to go until the two protagonists are due to touch gloves, not a single person has a ticket in their hands.

That's not to say that nobody has bought one; SeatGeek, which claims to be the world's largest event ticket search engine, is selling briefs for up to $30,000 (£20,000).

These are known as 'spec tickets' which the sellers don't have but expect to get before the fight.

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The venue for the bout, the 16,500-capacity MGM Grand Arena has the following message on its website:

'Details on ticket sales coming soon! Please be aware that tickets for the May 2, 2015, Mayweather vs Pacquiao fight are not yet available for purchase.

'Buyers should use extra caution when purchasing alleged tickets from unofficial sources, for fraudulent or counterfeit tickets will not be accepted.'

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So why the delay?

Initially, Pacquiao's promoter Bob Arum said tickets would be on sale in the first week of April but that less than 1,000 - priced between $1,500 and $7,500 - were expected to be made available to the public.

The rest would be distributed by the fighters, promoters, television networks Showtime and HBO and the MGM Grand.

But last week, SeatGeek analyst Connor Gregoire said: 'It's bizarre, normally there's a public sale 10 weeks before the fight. To our knowledge no one has a printed ticket in their hands right now.'

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Gregoire went on to say that only a dozen tickets had been sold through the website at an average price of $8,000 (£5,400).

Another ticketing site, StubHub, are yet to put any tickets on sale.

Spokesperson Alison Salcedo said: 'There's still so much up in the air for this fight that we're not allowing spec sales. We're not willing to take that risk now.'

As far as Arum is concerned, the blame lies squarely on Mayweather's side.

'All of this is on the MGM (Grand), I mean, if you think that the MGM is calling the shots here, you're totally mistaken. It's the man behind the curtain,' he told Boxing Scene, alluding to Mayweather's adviser Al Haymon.

'This is going to the governor's office. This is an absolute disgrace, what's happening.

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'What do you want from me? It's not on us.'

Pacquiao's manager Michael Koncz has also expressed his frustration.

He said: 'It's a real mess right now. I can only surmise the motivation is greed and an attempt to manipulate the tickets, otherwise why the holdup? I'm more than a little upset they're not for sale to the public.'

In the opposite corner, Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe has claimed Arum was lashing out because he is not the lead promoter in the fight.

'Every time he doesn't get his way, he goes running to the press misrepresenting the facts,' he said.

'The bottom line is this: Bob cannot stomach the fact that he is not the lead promoter. Reality has set in, and this is typical Bob. My responsibility is to ensure every deal is done properly, to benefit the fighters and the event.'

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Ellerbe did say that tickets would be on sale last week but there is no sign of an end to the stalemate.

Nor is there any indication of when the reported 50,000 closed-circuit seats at MGM properties - priced at around $150 (£100) - in Las Vegas will be available to purchase.

The hotel's website says simply: 'Please check back for closed-circuit viewing availability at other MGM Resorts Properties.'

In fact, the only ticket you can buy is for the weigh-in. Priced at $10, the unusual step has been taken in an effort to control the expected huge crowd but all proceeds will go to charity with each fighter nominating their choice.

With UFC star Ronda Rousey guaranteed the only free ticket from Arum and Amir Khan set to be ringside next Saturday as he eyes a future fight against either man, there will at least be a crowd of sorts.

But who will join them is anyone's guess.

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