By Rick Horrow and Karla Swatek
September 6, 2013
Boxer Floyd Mayweather is guaranteed a $41.5 million payout for his fight next Saturday against Canelo Alvarez, making it the largest fight purse of all-time and topping the $32 million Mayweather made against Robert Guerrero earlier this year. Mayweather could make even more money after accounting for pay-per-view buys, which could challenge the record of 2.44 million set by Mayweather and Oscar de la Hoya in 2007. This will be Mayweather’s second fight in the 30-month, six-fight deal he signed with Showtime-CBS that will pay him a total of $300 million over the life of the contract.
As U.S. interest in boxing wanes, Mayweather has been the one prizefighter that consistently pulls in a large audience. His last five fights each generated more than 1 million PPV buys. With paydays totaling $73 million in 2013, Mayweather is poised to be the country’s highest-earning athlete for the second consecutive year.
