Mayweather-Cotto generates 1.5 million pay per view buys

Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s unaimous decision over Miguel Cotto on May 5 generated 1.5 million buys and $94 million in pay per view revenue, HBO announced on Friday.

Mayweather-Cotto ranks as the second highest grossing non-heavyweight pay-per-view event in boxing history, with Mayweather's victory over Oscar De La Hoya in 2007 being listed as No. 1, all-time, at $137 million.

In victory over Cotto (37-3, 30 knockouts), Mayweather (43-0, 26 KOs) added Cotto's WBA junior middlweight title to the WBC welterweight belt he already owned.

Mayweather earned his eighth crown in five weight classes by defeating Cotto in front of 16,047 cheering, and, on occasion, standing fans at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

"Those recent results show that Floyd Mayweather is unquestionably not only the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world," said Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer, "but also, the pound-for-pound biggest pay per view star not only of today, but ever."

HBO will rebroadcast Mayweather-Cotto on Saturday at 10:15 p.m., along with the co-feature, a unanimous decision by WBC junior middleweight beltholder, Saul Alvarez. (40-0-1, 29 KOs) over ex-beltholder Sugar Shane Mosley.

The loss ended Mosley's streak of 21 wins over opponents of Mexican decent, including two each over De La Hoya and Fernando Vargas and another over Antonio Margarito. Mosley knocked out Vargas and Margarito.

Mosley (46-8-1, 39 KOs) slipped to 0-3-1 in last four bouts, including losses to Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, respectively, in May of 2010 and May of last year.

Photos by Tom Hogan, Hogan Photos/Golden Boy Promotions

Lem Satterfield can be reached at lemuel.satterfield@gmail.com