Late bettors flocked toward Mayweather
Still undefeated and still a cash machine, Floyd Mayweather Jr. did what he always does. He danced, played defense and landed enough timely punches to win a decision.
The bottom line: It was easy “Money.”
Mayweather controlled a boring fight, as always. The underdog was not live Saturday night, when Mayweather walked away with a unanimous decision over Manny Pacquiao.
The biggest betting event in boxing history never came close to matching the hype. After years of speculation and months of intense hype, the 12-round fight flew by in 46 minutes and left the crowd at the MGM Grand Garden deflated. But for Las Vegas bookmakers and those who bet on Mayweather — and the sharp money was on the favorite — it might as well be remembered as a classic.
“All morning it was Mayweather, Mayweather,” MGM Resorts sports book director Jay Rood said of the wagering action.
And in the afternoon and evening?
“It was all Mayweather,” Rood said.
The result was surprising only in that Pacquiao, the more popular fighter with the betting public, never unleashed the relentless attack that was anticipated. He won no more than four rounds on any of the three judges’ scorecards. There was no drama in the decision.
An obvious loser, Pacquiao said he thought he won the fight, a comment that made him a stand-up comedian. But the truth is Mayweather as a moving target was too elusive and too quick for Pacquiao to hit.
The monster bets, similar to Pacquaio, never really showed up. That was another minor disappointment.
“I was expecting a couple $1 million plays both ways,” Rood said. “We didn’t get any $1 million plays.”
The biggest bet at MGM books was for $500,000 on Pacquiao. There also was a bet for $111,000 on Pacquiao to win in Round 7 at 12-1 odds. There were several six-figure wagers on Mayweather, who delivered a good win for the books, according to Rood.
Wynn Las Vegas sports book director John Avello said the biggest bet he took was for $500,000 on Mayweather, who will make about $200 million and took little punishment for the paycheck.
“The big $100,000 to $500,000 wagers are mostly on Mayweather,” Avello said.
The wagering handle in Nevada could hit around $70 million — by comparison, the state’s Super Bowl handle this year was $116 million — with Rood saying MGM Resorts handled “shy” of $30 million.
“It’s a real strong handle,” Rood said. “It’s right there with what we wrote on the Super Bowl point spread and total.”
The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks put on a much better show. It was not even close. If this event was supposed to mean a surge in boxing’s popularity with the average fan, it had the opposite effect. Did anyone walk away feeling a thrill Saturday night, other than Mayweather and his betting backers? The NFL remains unthreatened as the undisputed king in entertainment and at the sports books.
Mayweather opened as a minus-240 favorite at MGM books, and that’s also where it closed. The line surged up from minus-200 after Rood said he was “peppered” Saturday with significant bets on Mayweather. Still, the final ticket count favored Pacquiao by about a 3-to-1 ratio.
Westgate sports book director Jay Kornegay said his book was balanced and in a “can’t-lose situation,” which also describes Mayweather’s career record (48-0).
Pacquiao was sluggish to start, landing only three of 29 punches in the first round. But he rebounded to win the second round, at least on my scorecard. So at that point it was a draw, every bookmakers’ biggest fear.
Rood said MGM Resorts wrote 5,035 tickets on the fight resulting in a draw, with more than 2,000 of those tickets written Saturday at 5-1 and 9-2 odds. The draw opened 22-1.
Rood said MGM’s books wrote around 50,000 tickets on the fight, a testament to how hype can drive the action.
The event attracted stars of all kinds — movie stars (Clint Eastwood, Robert DeNiro), sports stars (Michael Jordan, Tom Brady) and people who are stars for no apparent reason (Paris Hilton).
The fight started at 8:58 p.m. The letdown hit at 9:44 p.m., when the last punches were thrown and we waited for the obvious decision to be announced.
A boring decision favoring Mayweather was the most predictable result all along.
Las Vegas Review-Journal sports betting columnist Matt Youmans can be reached at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907. He co-hosts “The Las Vegas Sportsline” weekdays at 2 p.m. on ESPN Radio (1100 AM). Follow him on Twitter: @mattyoumans247.
