What time does the Mayweather v Pacquiao fight begin tonight and what TV channel can I watch it on?
All you need to know about Floyd Mayweather's (146lbs) fight against Manny Pacquiao (145lbs) at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas - odds, TV, weigh-in, what the fighters are saying and the referee
When is the big fight?
Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will finally step into the ring on Saturday May 2 in Las Vegas. The doors will open at the venue at 2pm local time, with the first bout scheduled at 3pm. The main event will start five hours later circa 8pm.
Las Vegas is eight hours behind the United Kingdom which means Mayweather vs Pacquiao will not begin in this country until around 4am on Sunday at UK time.
NB: Boxing matches have been known to start much later than advertised.
How can I watch it?
The fight is available through pay-per-view on Sky Sports at a cost of £19.95. Coverage begins at midnight on Sunday 3 May. The event can be ordered with a Sky remote, online or on the phone.
From midnight on Friday May 1 until 7.00am on Sunday May 3, the price for booking over the phone will rise by £5.
TalkTalk customers will be able to access the fight for £14.95 via Sky Sports Box Office on TalkTalk TV by visiting channel 528.
Where is the fight?
At the MGM Grand Casino on the Las Vegas Strip. The capacity of the venue is relatively small by American standards, at 16,500, but it is the modern home of boxing, having staged a multitude of huge fights in recent years.
The weigh-in
Friday night's weigh-in was a predictably boisterous affair. Mayweather came in one pound heavier, at 146lbs to Pacquiao's 145lbs.
What are they saying?
The boxers spoke on Wednesday in their final pre-fight press conference.
Manny Pacquiao ploughed a familiar furrow by invoking his faith:
Everything I have accomplished, God has given me this strength. I used to sleep in the street, hungry, and I cannot imagine that the Lord raised me to this level of life.
Everything I have accomplished, God has given me this strength. I used to sleep in the street, hungry, and I cannot imagine that the Lord raised me to this level of life.
Floyd Mayweather also attempted to stay humble:
(It is) the biggest fight in boxing history and I'm a part of it so that's a great thing. I'm just truly, truly blessed to be where I'm at. I feel good, I feel strong and I'll see you guys Saturday. You guys came out here to see excitement, to see a great event and I think that's what both competitors bring to the table - excitement.
Meanwhile Manny Pacquiao's trainer Freddie Roach cast doubt over whether Mayweather would show up:
I wonder if he's going to show up. At the press conference in Los Angeles, I said we were going to kick his ass and I didn't get a response. I don't think any fighter is afraid. I think he was forced into this fight. I don't think he wants to fight this fight. He didn't get to pick his opponent.
You can watch highlights from the press conference and read Matt Fleming's live report right here:
Who's going to win?
Floyd Mayweather is favourite for Saturday's fight, with odds as short as 4/9 on with some bookmakers. 1/2 is the widely available price for Mayweather, whose odds have lengthed marginally since the fight was announced.
Manny Pacquiao is generally priced at 2/1 to beat the American. A draw is priced at around 18/1.
The fight is expected to go the distance, with odds of 3/10 available and 12/5 for the fight not running to the end of a 12th round.
Several less conventional bets are available, including 4/1 for Pacquiao to be knocked down, 3/1 that Mayweather will be, and as long as 20/1 that both fighters will be downed during the fight.
Mayweather is 200/1 to win within 60 seconds, Pacquiao slightly shorter at 150/1 and either doing so is 66/1.
You can also get odds of 4/1 that one of the fighters will receive a points deduction.
If four million people buy the fight the purse will be around $200m, which is £129m. Of that, Mayweather would take home £76m to Pacquiao's £53m, due to the 60:40 split agreed between the fighters.
The split fits the trend of Mayweather earning more, and being significantly richer than Pacquiao, as this graphic from BWin's excellent Ultimate Tale Of The Tape illustrates:
Mayweather will soon have even more money to take photographs of
What's the undercard?
Two fights will be televised, but there are four taking place before those at the MGM Grand.
The undercard is subject to change, but here is the latest running order:
Televised PPV undercard:
126 lbs: WBC Super Bantamweight World Champion Leo "El Terremoto" Santa Cruz (29-0-1, 17 KOs) vs. Jose Cayetano (17-3, 8 KOs)
126 lbs: WBO Featherweight Champion Vasyl Lomachenko (3-1, 1 KO) vs. Gamalier Rodriguez (25-2-3, 17 KOs)
Untelevised bouts:
154 lbs: Chris "Sweet" Pearson (11-0, 9 KOs) vs. Said El Harrak (12-2, 7 KOs)
168 lbs: Jesse Hart (16-0, 13 KOs) vs. Mike Jimenez (17-0, 11 KOs)
200 lbs: Andrew "The Beast" Tabiti (9-0, 9 KOs) vs. Anthony Caputo Smith (15-4, 10 KOs)
154 lbs: Brad Solomon (24-0, 9 KOs) vs. Adrian Rene Granados (13-3, 9 KOs)
Tale of the tape
Floyd Mayweather
Age: 38
Nickname: Money
Stance: Orthodox
Height: 5ft 8ins
Reach: 72ins
Record: 47-0, 26 knockouts
Rounds boxed: 363
World title fights: 24
Career earnings: $420 million
Age: 38
Nickname: Money
Stance: Orthodox
Height: 5ft 8ins
Reach: 72ins
Record: 47-0, 26 knockouts
Rounds boxed: 363
World title fights: 24
Career earnings: $420 million
Manny Pacquiao
Age: 36
Nickname: Pacman
Stance: Southpaw
Height: 5ft 6ins
Reach: 67ins
Record: 57 wins, 5 defeats, 2 draws. 38 knockouts.
Rounds boxed: 407
World title fights: 19
Career earnings: $340 million
Age: 36
Nickname: Pacman
Stance: Southpaw
Height: 5ft 6ins
Reach: 67ins
Record: 57 wins, 5 defeats, 2 draws. 38 knockouts.
Rounds boxed: 407
World title fights: 19
Career earnings: $340 million
Mayweather v Pacquiao - the making of a superfight
Dec 2008
Mayweather retires as No 1 pound for pound boxer after beating Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton. His record is 39-0.
March 2009
Mayweather announces comeback. "I'm the King. I left on top. I came back on top," he says.
May 2009
Pacquiao takes over as No 1 pound for pound fighter after beating De La Hoya and then knocking out Hatton, on May 2.
September 2009
Mayweather makes his comeback and defeats Juan Manuel Marquez.
October 2009
Mayweather's father sparks controversy with comments about Pacquiao. He says: "I don't think he can beat Lil' Floyd with steroids in him or not. He don't have that kind of talent. He don't have that kind of skill, whatever he has in him."
December 2009
Defamation lawsuit filed by Pacquiao against Mayweather and his camp for Mayweather Snr's comments. Lawsuit was settled out of court in 2012.
Dec 2009
Contract is sent to Mayweather on behalf of Pacquiao proposing a 50-50 financial split for a fight on March 13, 2010.
Jan 2010
Fight falls apart over Pacquiao's objections to Mayweather's demands for urine testing and strict, random blood testing, right up to weigh-in day.
July 2010
Snoop Dogg publicly begs Pacquiao to “get in the ************* ring.”
September 2010
Mayweather rants at Pacquiao on an internet video post: “As soon as we come off vacation, we're going to cook that little yellow chump."
April 2011
Nelson Mandela’s daughter tries to arrange bout for her father’s 93rd birthday. But fails.
January 2012
Mayweather and Pacquiao speak on the phone. Mayweather offers Pacquiao a flat fee of $40 million for the fight. It is declined.
December 2012
Pacquiao is knocked out by Juan Manuel Marquez which further scuppers hopes of a Mayweather-Pacquiao encounter.
December 2013
Mayweather says fight will never happen because of his relationship with Bob Arum: "We all know the reason the Pacquiao fight won't happen is because I will never do business with Bob Arum again in life, and Pacquiao is Bob Arum's fighter.”
January 2014
Pacquiao challenges Mayweather to a charity fight.
January 2014
Pacquiao’s tax payments are investigated. Pacquiao calls for a Mayweather fight. Mayweather says: “He wants Floyd Mayweather to solve his problems."
September 2014
Fight seemingly never going to happen after Mayweather insists on it happening on Showtime pay-per-view. Pacquiao is with HBO.
October 2014
Breakthrough. A waiter in a West Hollywood restaurant introduces Les Moonves, president and chief executive of CBS Corp, to Freddie Roach, Pacquiao's trainer (pictured). Roach tells Moonves Pacquiao wants to fight and Moonves starts work to set it up.
November 2014
After beating Chris Algieri in Macau, Pacquiao says the people "deserve" his fight with Mayweather.
December 2014
Mayweather accuses Arum and Pacquiao of creating a delay for the fight and urges it to happen.
January 2015
Arum (pictured) claims Pacquiao has agreed to terms for a fight with Mayweather on May 2 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The deal calls for a 60-40 purse split in favour of the pound-for-pound king, with drug testing also agreed on. The hurdle now was getting television companies HBO and SHOWTIME to agree.
January 2015
Mayweather and Pacquiao speak for the first time face to face at half-time of the Milwaukee Bucks-Miami Heat game in Miami. Mayweather gave Pacquiao his mobile number and they met in Pacquiao's hotel suite.
February 2014
Telegraph Sport reveals that the richest match-up in boxing history between Mayweather and Pacquiao had finally been agreed after years of haggling.
February 2015
The May 2 Pacquiao-Mayweather boxing match was finally made official by Mayweather on social network site 'Shots'.
Who will be in the corners?
Mayweather: Floyd Mayweather Sr. (trainer), Rafael Garcia (cutman), and Roger Mayweather (assistant).
Pacquiao: Freddie Roach (Trainer), Justin Fortune (Cutman), & Buboy Fernandez (Assistant).
Who is the referee and judges?
Kenny Bayless will be refereeing the fight: he has over 20 years of title fight experience and his appointment was welcomed by both fighters.
The three judges are Dave Moretti, Glenn Feldman and Burt Clements, who have all largely steered clear of controversy in their long careers.
How much are the boxers earning?
Loads. But Mayweather is earning a fair bit more than Pacquiao
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