Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao 2015: How Much Live Gate Revenue Will The Fight Generate?

The megafight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will break all kinds of boxing records, but the latest numbers are even bigger than many had originally projected. Ticket sales are expected to generate close to $74 million, which would set a live gate record and dwarfing anything the sport has ever seen.

Top Rank chairman Bob Arum has told ESPN.com that the revenue will be generated from the sale of a little more than 15,000 tickets. Approximately 1,100 seats will be sold for $10,000 each, and another 2,500 tickets are going for $7,500 each. The cheapest tickets will be sold for $1,500 each, with 2,500 more going for $2,500. The price of the least expensive tickets was raised from $1,000 each when the demand for seats increased.

The demand for tickets has made the event unlike any other in sports. Only a handful of tickets will be made available for purchase by the general public, and Arum says they’ll go on sale next week. It will be a star-studded event with some of Hollywood’s most famous celebrities in attendance. While high-profile celebrities are usually given free front row seats, that won’t be the case on May 2.

Mayweather will break his own gate record, which he set on Sept. 14, 2003. His fight against Canelo Alvarez generated just over $20 million, breaking the record of $18.4 million that he set in 2007 against Oscar De La Hoya. The gate revenue of the May 2 fight will exceed that of the combined gates for the top four fights in the history of Nevada boxing. Lennox Lewis vs. Evander Holyfield II currently ranks third with $16.86 million, while the first Mayweather vs. Marcos Maidana bout is fourth at just over $15 million.

None of Pacquiao’s fights in Las Vegas have ever broken $15 million at the gate, setting a personal high with a $14.38 million gate against De La Hoya on Dec. 6, 2008. His most recent Las Vegas bout ranks 27th all time, as he and Timothy Bradley drew $7.86 million in ticket sales.

Mayweather vs. Pacquiao won’t just set a boxing record, but it will blow any UFC fight out of the water. According to ESPN’s Dan Rafael, the top 15 UFC gates in Nevada have only grossed $72 million, compared to the $74 million that the mega-fight is expected to draw.

The fight’s combined total revenue could surpass $400 million and may even approach nearly half a billion dollars. Mayweather vs. Alvarez set a record with $150 million in revenue.