By Edward Chaykovsky
The hot industry rumor going around is that WBC/WBA welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. (48-0, 26KOs) will potentially have his scheduled return, on September 12th, carried for free on network television.
Mayweather has exclusively fought on pay-per-view for practically a decade. The upcoming fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas is being billed as his "final career fight."
After demolishing all pay-per-view records for the May victory over Manny Pacquiao, and earning more than $230 million in the process, not much remains for Mayweather to accomplish.
The return in September is also the final bout of Mayweather's exclusive contract with CBS/Showtime. And CBS is reportedly the network where Mayweather's next fight will land.
According to CBS Sports, Mayweather is seriously considering the option of fighting on CBS and not on Showtime Pay-Per-View.
Stephen Espinoza, executive vice president of Showtime Sports, did not rule out the possibility of Mayweather's next fight being carried on network television.
“It’s wide open,” Eszpinoza told the Las Vegas Review Journal. “The one thing Floyd has made clear to all of us is he wants his last fight to be very special and unique.”
Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions, told the paper that every option is being considered.
“Me, Floyd and Al (Haymon) have discussed a number of scenarios for September 12,” Ellerbe said. “We’re still looking at everything, and Floyd hasn’t made any decisions yet.”