Tuesday, May 1, 2007 | 7:16 a.m.
From a wagering perspective, the Oscar De La Hoya-Floyd Mayweather fight could emerge as the richest boxing event in Las Vegas' modern era.
Betting on the bout is expected to amount to several million dollars at the host MGM-Mirage properties alone, approaching or exceeding the handle generated by the second Mike Tyson-Evander Holyfield heavyweight fight in 1997, said Robert Walker, director of race and sports book operations for MGM-Mirage.
"People see this as the biggest boxing match in a long time, and no one's sure when another one is going to happen, so people are betting accordingly," Walker said. "It's like the Super Bowl, where people bet more than they do on a regular weekly basis because they know it's the last game of the season."
Mayweather, who puts his unbeaten record and unofficial title of the sport's best pound-for-pound fighter on the line Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, is a minus-180 favorite (risk $1.80 to win $1) against De La Hoya. (Odds are subject to change.)
In the round proposition, bettors are required to risk $2.50 to $3 to win $1 that the fight will last 11 1/2 or all 12 rounds, depending on the odds at each sports book.
The price on Mayweather to win represents a drop from the opening line of about minus-220, indicating most of the money has been wagered on underdog De La Hoya.
At MGM-Mirage properties, Walker said , he has accepted plenty of wagers on De La Hoya in the $5,000 to $10,000 range. Walker has also been fielding inquiries on six-figure bets, though no gambler has risked that much yet. Several six-figure bets are expected to come in by the weekend, Walker said.
The tickets on De La Hoya could outnumber those on Mayweather by 3-to-1, Walker said, although most of the larger wagers will be on Mayweather - a typical pattern for a fight based in Las Vegas, where the betting public traditionally supports the underdog at the sports book windows.
"De La Hoya is by far the most popular fighter out there," Walker said. "Mayweather might be the favorite, and De La Hoya might be the underdog, but Oscar is the draw."
IN THIS CORNER
Oscar De La Hoya, Three key fights
1. Julio Cesar Chavez, June 7, 1996: De La Hoya cut the legendary champion's brow badly in the first round and went on to bloody his mouth and nose on the way to a fourth-round stoppage for the junior welterweight world title.
2. Felix Trinidad, Sept. 18, 1999: Rallying in the last four rounds on the judges' cards, Trinidad won a close majority decision to take the welterweight world title against De La Hoya, who felt his tactical fighting should have been enough .
3. Shane Mosley, Sept. 13, 2003: Three years after beating De La Hoya in their first meeting, Mosley - later to become a partner in Golden Boy Promotions - came on strong in the second half of the fight to win another close decision in a 154-pound world title bout.
Floyd Mayweather Jr., Three key fights
1. Genaro Hernandez, Oct. 3, 1998: In his 18th professional fight, Mayweather secured the WBC super featherweight belt by dismantling the reigning champion in eight rounds at the Las Vegas Hilton, earning his first world title.
2. Jose Luis Castillo, Dec. 7, 2002: In a rematch against a tough Mexican opponent, Mayweather grinded out a 12-round unanimous decision to retain his world lightweight championship.
3. Arturo Gatti, June 25, 2005: Mayweather cemented his position atop many observers' pound-for-pound rankings by battering Gatti in a sixth-round stoppage in Atlantic City, Gatti's home turf.
Pay-per-view
Most pay-per-view buys, heavyweight division: Mike Tyson-Evander Holyfield II, June 28, 1997, 1.9 million buys
Most pay-per-view revenue, heavyweight division: Mike Tyson-Lennox Lewis, June 8, 2002, $106.9 million
Most pay-per-view buys, revenue, non-heavyweights: Oscar De La Hoya-Felix Trinidad, Sept. 18, 1999, 1.4 million buys, $70 million
Leading fighters by career pay-per-view revenue generated:
1. Mike Tyson, $545 million
2. Evander Holyfield, $543 million
3. Oscar De La Hoya, $492 million
(De La Hoya would take over first place if Saturday's fight generates 965,000 buys)
Sources:
10 Years After
10 years ago this month, Oscar De La Hoya was ranked atop The Ring magazine's list of boxing's best pound-for-pound fighters. To illustrate how the boxing landscape has changed, here's how the list looked:
1. Oscar De La Hoya, welterweight
2. Roy Jones, light heavyweight
3. Pernell Whitaker, welterweight
4. Felix Trinidad, welterweight
5. Ricardo Lopez, strawweight
6. Junior Jones, junior featherweight
7. Kostya Tszyu, junior welterweight
8. Terry Norris, junior middleweight
9. Evander Holyfield, heavyweight
10. Mark Johnson, flyweight
(Floyd Mayweather Jr. entered the Top 10 a year and a half later in December ' 98, the month he beat Angel Manfredy in a super featherweight title fight . )
$90 million fight
The De La Hoya-Mayweather fight is projected to gross at least $90 million in revenue, live gate and pay-per-view revenue combined.
Here's where that figure ranks in comparison with other business and cultural milestones:
Cumulative box office figures so far for selected current hit movies:
"Blades of Glory," $108 million
De La Hoya-Mayweather
"Meet the Robinsons," $88.3 million
"Disturbia," $52.1 million
Poker tournament prize pools:
De La Hoya-Mayweather
2006 World Series of Poker main event, $82.5 million
2005 World Series of Poker main event, $52.8 million
2004 World Series of Poker main event, $24.2 million
Super Bowl handle in Nevada sports books
2006, $94.5 million
2007, $93 million
2005, $90.7 million
De La Hoya-Mayweather
2004, $81.2 million
2006 concert tours, gross receipts
Rolling Stones, $138.5 million
Barbra Streisand, $92.5 million
De La Hoya-Mayweather
Tim McGraw/Faith Hill, $88.8 million
Madonna, $85.9 million
Selected 2006 golfers' earnings (on and off course)
Tiger Woods, $98.9 million
De La Hoya-Mayweather
Phil Mickelson, $44.2 million
Arnold Palmer, $27.5 million
Michelle Wie, $20.2 million
Top live gates
Saturday's sold-out De La Hoya-Mayweather fight will establish a record $19 million live gate.
Here are the top previous live gates for boxing matches in Nevada:
Fight | gross | gross in 2007 dollars adjusted for inflation
1. Lennox Lewis vs. Evander Holyfield II, Nov. 13, 1999 $16.8 million | $20.7 million
2. Evander Holyfield vs. Mike Tyson II, June 28, 1997 $14.2 million | $18.1 million
3. Evander Holyfield vs. Mike Tyson I, Nov. 9, 1996 $14.1 million | $18.4 million
4. Mike Tyson vs. Peter McNeeley, Aug. 19, 1995 $13.9 million | $18.7 million
5. Felix Trinidad vs. Oscar De La Hoya, Sept. 18, 1999 $12.9 million | $15.9 million
6. Bernard Hopkins vs. Oscar De La Hoya, Sept. 18, 2004 $12.7 million | $13.8 million
7. Mike Tyson vs. Frank Bruno II, March 16, 1996 $10.6 million | $13.8 million
8. Shane Mosley vs. Oscar De La Hoya, Sept. 13, 2003 $9.8 million | $10.9 million
9. Oscar De La Hoya vs. Fernando Vargas, Sept. 14, 2002 $8.8 million | $10 million
10. Oscar De La Hoya vs. Ricardo Mayorga, May 6, 2006 $7.6 million | $7.7 million
Source: Nevada State Athletic Commission
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