Floyd Mayweather v Manny Pacquiao: Fight of the century to become fight in court
MAY 20, 2015 8:04AM
Do Fans Suing Manny Pacquiao Have a Case?
BOXING fans across the country and their lawyers are calling the hyped-up fight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Junior a fraud and want their money back.
And then some.
At least 32 class action lawsuits allege Pacquiao should have disclosed a shoulder injury to boxing fans before the fight, which Mayweather won in a unanimous decision after 12 lacklustre rounds that most fans thought didn’t live up to the hype.
Fight of the century? More like fraud of the century, the lawsuits contend.
“The fight was not great, not entertaining, not electrifying. It was boring, slow and lacklustre,” according to a lawsuit filed in Texas alleging racketeering, a claim usually reserved for organised crime.
The performance of Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather has been widely panned. Source: 9jahotgist
A lawsuit filed on behalf of Flights Beer Bar near Los Angeles International Airport in California said Pacquiao and his promoter’s actions were, “nothing but a cash-grab.” The bar paid $US2,600 ($A3,254) to broadcast the fight.
As for that grabbed cash, the fighters are each expected to earn more than $US100 million ($A125.14 million), Mayweather more than Pacquiao, and HBO and Showtime broke records raking in more than $US400 million ($A500.56 million) from 4.4 million paying to watch the pay-per-view broadcast.
Those 4.4 million paid up to $US100 ($A125) each to watch the fight, and the lawsuits are seeking their money back.
It isn’t as easy as showing a receipt and demanding a refund, though.
The failure to disclose Manny Pacquiao’s shoulder injury will form part of the legal action. Source: 9jahotgist
A federal panel of judges will likely first need to decide if the cases from multiple states and Puerto Rico should be consolidated into one case. From there, a judge would have to decide whether to certify them as class actions or not.
What’s sought in each is the same: a jury trial and at least $US5 million ($A6.26 million) in damages, the threshold for federal class actions.
But the defendants differ. All include Pacquiao and his promotions team but some add Mayweather and his representatives along with HBO, Showtime and cable companies.
Representatives for Pacquiao and Top Rank Promotions, HBO and Showtime had no comment to offer on the lawsuits and Mayweather Promotions did not return multiple phone messages.
The Fight of the Century was a dud, according to numerous litigious boxing fans in the United States. Source: 9jahotgist
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