Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao agree to May 2 fight

Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will finally give boxing the mega-fight fans and observers have craved for years after it was announced on Friday that the pair will face off for unified welterweight championship on May 2 at Las Vegas's MGM Grand Garden Arena.

As part of the agreement for what will be the most lucrative showdown in fight history, Mayweather made the announcement via his account on the social media web site Shots.com, bringing to an end years of frustration and conjecture that seemed destined to keep the sport's two highest-profile athletes apart.

Here's his message on the social media site Shots:

What the world has been waiting for has arrived. Mayweather vs. Pacquiao on May 2, 2015, is a done deal. I promised the fans we would get this done, and we did. We will make history on May 2nd. Don't miss it! This is the signed contract from both fighters.

He will make upwards of $100 million when he meets Pacquiao, from the Philippines. Pacquiao (57-5-2) has long admitted that he was agreeable to a 60%-40% split of revenue in Mayweather's favor, while pay-per-view revenues are expected to far exceed the current record of $150 million, from Mayweather's fight with Saul Alvarez in 2013.

The announcement comes after Mayweather and Pacquiao met by coincidence for the first time at a Miami Heat basketball game on Jan. 27, and again later that evening in Pacquiao's hotel suite to discuss terms of the fight.

"This is the right fight for boxing," Pacquiao said in a statement. "Floyd Mayweather and I is the fight boxing fans have wanted for years and I am looking forward to it. I will be representing my fans and my country and trying to bring glory to the Philippines."

There were countless stumbling blocks in the way of the fight, which was first discussed as far back as 2009 and fell apart on several occasions over issues such as drug testing, the fractious relationship between the two promotional camps and simple stubbornness.

The failure to bring together the two most marketable mainstream stars of recent times was increasingly becoming a black mark on the sport, and there had been so many false dawns that most boxing fans had become resigned to the bout never taking place.

However, negotiations steadily picked up pace since end of last year and overcame a major hurdle when rival cable companies Showtime (which has an exclusive deal with Mayweather) and HBO (which broadcasts Pacquiao fights) agreed to a split arrangement whereby both could sell the contest on pay per view.

Stephen Espinoza, the Showtime Sports boss, said in a statement:

"Everyone involved, including Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, knows this fight simply had to happen. All of us are thrilled to be able to deliver this event to boxing fans around the world. Now, for the second time under his current deal with Showtime Networks, Floyd Mayweather has agreed to fight an opponent that many people thought he'd never face. We set an all-time pay-per-view record with the first event back in September 2013, and we look forward to another record-breaking performance on May 2."

Ken Hershman, the President, HBO Sports said: "Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather have been the two most prominent fighters in the sport of boxing for the past decade, and fight fans around the world have been clamoring for them to face each other... May 2nd will be a signature moment for the sport of boxing and HBO Sports is thrilled to be a part of this spectacular event."

Mayweather will go into the fight as favorite, yet it can safely be considered by far his toughest test in recent times. He turns 38 next week, while Pacquiao is 36, and while neither man is at his peak, it is without question the most compelling match-up boxing has to offer.

Pacquiao's most recent fight, a one-sided dismantling of out-matched hopeful Chris Algieri in Macau in November, did little to give indication as to the Filipino's capabilities of matching Mayweather, boxing's undisputed pound-for-pound king.

However, Pacquiao followers will hope that their man's southpaw style and speedy hands and feet will pose difficulty for the defense-minded Mayweather.

In any case, such discussions are for another day as Friday brought the news boxing had first waited for with hope, then begun to scarcely dare to believe.

The big one is no longer a myth or a tease or a what-might-have-been. It is real, it is happening, and it is less than three months away.