With just two bouts featured on the pay-per-view (PPV) undercard that starts at 9 p.m. ET, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will likely begin their walks to the ring no later than 11:30 p.m. ET tonight.
That will give the HBO/Showtime production teams 2.5 hours to promote the Welterweight championship unification main event match, while WBC Super Bantamweight World Champion Leo Santa Cruz steps up to Featherweight to battle Jose Cayetano in the non-title co-main event and WBO Featherweight Champion Vasyl Lomachenko defends his belt in the PPV show opener against Gamalier Rodriguez.
In other words, the production teams will have way too much time on its hands, which is the reason company executives issued warnings earlier this week to purchase the PPV early and tune in early, too, figuring the typical after midnight start time would not apply this evening.
Hopefully.
Pacquiao, the WBO Welterweight champion, will walkout first to a song the he wrote and sings, "Lalaban ako para sa Pilipino," which translates to "I will fight for the Philippines." Legendary ring announcer Michael Buffer will introduce Pacquiao in the ring because he is with HBO. Gail Banawis, a 19-year-old Filipina who hails from Bronx, N.Y., will perform the Philippine national anthem.
Mayweather, the undefeated (47-0) WBC/WBA Welterweight champion, will enter the squared circle second, but it's unknown at this time what music will accompany his entrance. Justin Bieber, however, is expected to once again escort "Money" to the cage with the rest of his entourage (not just some random fan). Showtime's vocal talent Jimmy Lennon Jr. will announce Mayweather. And Academy- and Grammy Award-winning actor/signer Jamie Foxx is set to perform the United States national anthem.
The two PPV undercard fights cannot take longer than two hours -- one is 12 rounds and the other is 10. Even if they both go the distance, it's a combine hour of ring time, leaving 90 minutes to fill ... and stall. That's not even taking into consideration that one -- or both -- PPV undercard bouts will finish sooner than expected.
Just be ready, okay? You didn't spend almost $100 to miss a minute of Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao.
To find out how to watch the Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao-led PPV event click here. Remember, too, that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round coverage of "Mayweather vs. Pacquiao" tonight, starting with the PPV broadcast at 9 p.m. ET RIGHT HERE.