Mayweather vs. Pacquiao: Breaking Down Chances Superfight Will Happen in 2015

The one true superfight that every boxing fan wants to see is Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao. Although negotiations between the two sides have broken down on several occasions, the stars may finally be aligning.

With Mayweather now 37 years of age and Pacquiao 35, both fighters are approaching the twilight of their respective careers. If this dream bout is ever going to happen, then it needs to be agreed upon in the very near future.

It can be argued that no situation in the history of boxing has ever had more twists and turns than the road to a potential Mayweather vs. Pacquiao fight. Even though the opposing camps can never seem to get on the same page, recent talk suggests that they may finally be coming around.

According to Ivan G. Goldman of BoxingInsider.com, a source revealed that Mayweather's father and trainer, Floyd Sr., has talked about his son posturing for a massive bout with Pacquiao in May 2015.

Although the Mayweather camp hasn't gone public with its possible intentions, Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum, hasn't shied away from expressing his desire to make the fight happen. In fact, Arum recently revealed a couple of different options that the two sides might be able to explore, per Kieran Gill of Daily Mail.

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We want to fight him and we're willing to discuss it at any point. There are two ways to go here. One is to do a Mayweather fight with both HBO and Showtime involved, as they did with (Lennox) Lewis (and Mike) Tyson, as I understand Mayweather is under contract to Showtime through 2015. The companies could come together and put on the show. Or, the other alternative is, if Floyd wanted to fight Manny in 2016, he could return to HBO and we could do it there.

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While the former scenario is possible, a fight in 2016 may not be on the table. According to ESPN.com's Dan Rafael, Mayweather intends to retire from active competition at the end of his Showtime contract in September 2015.

"I only got two more fights left (after Saturday) and after the next two fights I just want to build the Mayweather Promotions brand," Mayweather said. ... "My next fight is in May and my last fight is in September, so a year from now will be my last fight."

Mayweather has twice retired only to return to the ring, but there is reason to believe that his intentions will be more permanent at the age of 37 next year.

There is unquestionably going to be big money involved for both Mayweather and Pacquiao if they find a way to make this happen. The exact number is unclear, but Jeff Powell of Daily Mail estimated that it will eclipse $300 million at the very least.

Mayweather and Pacquiao are two of the greatest fighters ever, and they obviously aren't hurting for money. With that said, turning down that big a payday seems insane, especially when the boxing world is desperate for a true prize fight.

The boxer with more to lose in this situation is clearly Mayweather. He boasts an unblemished record and he would certainly be putting that in jeopardy against someone of Pac-Man's caliber.

When asked about the possibility of Mayweather vs. Pacquiao happening back in April, Pacquiao's trainer, Freddie Roach, told Powell that Mayweather's undefeated mark was probably the biggest thing standing in the way of getting a deal done.

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It looked close two years ago but I don't think Floyd will take the chance now. Floyd's main concern has become keeping that 0 (for zero losses) on his record. I don't see him taking any real risk of losing that before the end of next year, when he says he's retiring. It's not that he's afraid of Manny. No fighters are scared of anybody in the world. It's just that he believes if he goes out undefeated he will be seen as better than greats like Sugar Ray Robinson, who had losses on their records.

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Although there are no guarantees, Mayweather would almost certainly enter the fight against Pacquiao as the favorite. Pac-Man has seemingly slipped a bit as he lost to Timothy Bradley and Juan Manuel Marquez before rebounding with victories over Brandon Rios and Bradley.

Because of that, boxing star Austin Trout believes Pacquiao's window of opportunity to beat Mayweather might have passed him by, per On The Ropes Boxing (h/t ABS-CBNnews.com)

"I believe that maybe a year ago, one or two years ago, Manny Pacquiao would have beaten Floyd," Trout said. "... Manny is not the same fighter he was a year ago. A year ago, I think he definitely could have given Floyd his first loss, but he's slowed down a bit and he's lost a step or two."

The notion that Mayweather is clearly the better fighter than Pacquiao right now—whether it is correct or not—is something that "Money" could be taking under consideration.

Even Roach, who said a few months ago that the fight would never happen, has softened his stance recently. In an interview with JR Sport Brief, Roach revealed that things are now trending in a positive direction.

"Well, you know, we've had some good meetings lately," Roach said. "And I think it will happen this year."

Roach's about-face is simply a microcosm of the circus that is Mayweather vs. Pacquiao speculation. Only those intimately involved know for sure where they stand, but it is clear from an outsider's perspective that it makes sense (and dollars) for the two camps to make this happen.

There are only two fights remaining in Mayweather's illustrious career, if he is to be believed, so time is running out to get this done. The clock is very much ticking on the careers of these two legendary fighters, and they owe it to themselves to see who the better man truly is.

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