Getty Logan Paul (right) faces Floyd Mayweather on June 6.
Social media icon Logan Paul has been telling anyone and everyone who will listen to him that his upcoming boxing match against Floyd Mayweather Jr. on June 6 in Miami is a legitimate prizefight, but Florida’s state boxing commission refuted that claim this week ahead of the Showtime pay-per-view event. According to ESPN’s Marc Raimondi, Mayweather vs. Paul will include a special set of rules that basically amounts to it being more of a sideshow circus act than a legit prizefight.
There will be no judges, no official winner, and larger gloves than are used in legit boxing matches.
Mayweather vs. Paul rules, per Florida commission:
— No judges
— No official winner read
— Knockouts legal
— KO up to ref discretion
— No headgear
— 12 oz. gloves
— Eight 3-minute rounds
So Mayweather vs. Paul is happening this weekend, but it’s nowhere near a real fight.
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Boxing Commission’s Rules Make Sense
While some fans might be disappointed in the news about the special rules, that’s just about the only move the state of Florida could have made in response to an event like Mayweather vs. Paul happening within its jurisdiction.
Mayweather, 44, is 50-0 with 27 KOs in boxing. He’s arguably the most successful boxing champion in history, and he”ll enter the ring with a significant advantage over Paul in terms of skills and experience.
To make matters even more complicated for the commission, Paul, 26, is 0-1 as a pro boxer, and he’ll enter the ring on fight night against Mayweather 18 years younger than the retired boxing legend but also likely to outweigh Mayweather by 30 pounds or so.
All that means is exactly what Heavy suggested when rumors of the bout first surfaced a few months ago. No boxing commission in the world could or should sanction such a fight in the traditional manner.
Florida’s exhibition rule set makes sense from that point of view.
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‘Bragging Rights’ or ‘Legalized Robbery’?
The promotional tagline for the event is “Bragging Rights”.
Still, with a price tag of $49.99, one has to wonder how its promoters can get away with marketing Mayweather vs. Paul as a boxing match at all.
Maybe a better tagline would be something like Mayweather’s recent comments about the fight being “legalized bank robbery”.
“My nickname is ‘Money’ for a reason. I worked extremely hard for years and years to get to a certain level. A level where we can start calling everything an event,” Mayweather said on Showtime’s “Inside Mayweather vs. Paul” show. “I believe in working smarter, not harder. So if it’s something easy like [the Paul fight], a legalized bank robbery, I gotta do it. I have to do it.”
Mayweather vs. Paul takes place on Sunday, June 6 via Showtime pay-per-view. It’s not quite a real boxing match, but something explosive should at least happen once these two superstars climb inside the ring together in Miami.
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