By Tim Smith, New York Daily News
If Floyd Mayweather Jr. had a handlebar mustache, it's a good bet that he would be twirling the ends while sneering. Mayweather loves to play the villain - at least when it comes to boxing.
Because Mayweather considers himself an entertainer, it is a role that he plays with relish. It is also a role that has made him the biggest pay-per-view attractions in the sport today.
Once again Mayweather has donned the black hat in the build up for his 12-round welterweight showdown with Shane Mosley at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on HBO PPV on Saturday night. Mayweather has needled Mosley about the fighter's relationship with his ex-wife, Jin; tweaked him about revelations that he once used steroids and belittled Mosley's business partnership with Oscar De La Hoya, whom Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs) beat twice.
"Somebody's got to be the bad guy and somebody's got to be the good guy," Mayweather said. "I might as well be the bad guy."
In his case Mayweather (40-0, 25 KOs) knows that being the bad guy pays huge dividends. As he points out Mosley, one of the
most congenial men in boxing, has played the good guy his entire career and what has it gotten him? The role of second fiddle to De La Hoya and Mayweather, whom he now faces in one of the most lucrative boxing PPV shows in the non-heavyweight divisions.
In Mayweather's mind being the villain insures that as many people will tune in to see him get beaten as will watch to see him win. It doesn't matter to him whether he wins friends as long as the cash register keeps on ringing. It is an age old formula that was perfected by the wrestler Gorgeous George, whom Muhammad Ali generously borrowed from when he was first starting out. There was a reason Ali was known as "The Louisville Lip."
In six HBO PPV fights Mayweather has generated 5.5 million buys and $292 million in revenue, according to figures from HBO Sports. While Oscar De La Hoya has generated the most total buys and revenue of anyone in history due to fighting 19 times on PPV, Mayweather's average revenue per PPV fight is the highest of all time (over $48 million per fight).
"Floyd is a pay-per-view phenomenon," said Mark Taffet, HBO PPV guru. "With his six fights having generated $292 million in pay-per-view revenue, there's a reason he is called Money Mayweather.
"His prolific performance has been the result of a few factors which simultaneously created a perfect storm - his crossover from boxing to sports to entertainment star, the explosive growth in internet and social media, and the spillover across all demographics from the surge of interest in the large urban centers across America."
Mayweather helped gain mainstream exposure in a turn on "Dancing With the Stars" and was involved in a plot line for Wrestlemania and the WWE.
Just when it appeared that Mayweather's star outside of boxing was on the rise, he retired from the sport in 2008. But even that brief hiatus from boxing worked in Mayweather's favor. While he was gone, Manny Pacquiao ascended to the throne of No. 1 Pound-for-Pound, setting the stage for a lucrative showdown with Mayweather. The first attempt was scuttled when Pacquiao refused to agree to pre-fight testing for performance enhancing drugs. But if Mayweather beats Mosley, the demand for a fight with Pacquiao will go through the roof.
Nothing seems to have bolstered Mayweather's star power more than his appearances on "24/7" HBO's boxing reality documentary. The lead up to his fight against Mosley was Mayweather's fourth appearance on the show and each time Mayweather and his family are the most riveting characters.
But this might be the first time that the fight inside the ring will match the drama presented on the boxing reality show. Mosley, who holds the WBA welterweight title, is one of the best 147-pounders of this generation and arguably the best boxer that Mayweather has ever faced. The anticipation in this match is that Mosley will force Mayweather to raise the level of his game or risk suffering the first loss of his career.
"As far as the fight goes, Mayweather-Mosley is a true PPV megafight," Taffet said. "It's a classic all-American showdown between two superstars who boxing fans have seen nearly 50 times over the past 15 years on HBO. It is a Super Bowl in the urban centers across America, and it will be one of the biggest non-heavyweight fights in pay-per-view history."
Many of them will tune in to see if the good guy, Mosley, can bring down the villain, Mayweather.
Source: nydailynews.com
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