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Boxing

Mayweather fight 'richest in history'

10/05/2007

The Las Vegas showdown between Floyd Mayweather and Oscar de la Hoya has officially been named the world's richest-ever boxing match.

The WBC super welterweight fight grossed $120 million (£60 million) from ticket sales, pay-per-view TV rights and sponsorship, surpassing the previous record of $110 million (£55 million) made from the heavyweight title bout between Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson in 2002.

It is only the second non-heavyweight boxing contest ever to record more than one million purchases on pay-per-view, clocking up well over double that figure.

This also beats the previous record of 1.99 million buys recorded for the infamous Tyson-Evander Holyfield heavyweight fight in 1997, when Tyson bit a chunk out of his opponent's ear.

Briton Mayweather, who won Sunday's fight on a split points decision – much to the derision of the partisan crowd that favoured De la Hoya – will reportedly earn about $20 million (£10 million) from the fight.

De la Hoya, who surrendered his WBC title with the defeat, is in line to pocket more than twice this amount - $45 million (£23 million).

Both boxers have intimated their intention to retire from the sport following the blockbuster payday.

Undefeated Mayweather has previously said it would be the final fight of his career, and De la Hoya hinted in his post-fight comments that he may be set to follow Mayweather out of the ring for good.

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