Manny Pacquiao Accused of Fraud in $400 Million Floyd Mayweather Fight

Manny Pacquiao faced off against Floyd Mayweather on May 2 during one of the most anticipated bouts in boxing history, commonly referred to as the “Fight of the Century.” For his troubles, he walked away with more than $100 million and possibly up to $120 million, according to International Business Times.

The Mayweather-Pacquiao fight was projected to generate a total of $400 million, and CNN reported the day after the match that the estimated total revenue was in fact between $300 million and $400 million.

But consumers are claiming that Pacquiao’s nine-figure payout was earned fraudulently. They’re accusing the fighter and his team of hiding a right shoulder injury before fans bought tickets, paid to see the fight on cable pay-per-view or bet on the match, ESPN reports.

Suits Call Fraud, But Lawyers Say Pacquiao Was Cleared to Fight

At least 13 class-action suits have been filed against the boxer, with one suit filed in California stating, “Pacquiao’s injury unquestionably materially, significantly and negatively affected the quality of the product.” Each suit asks for damages over $5 million, claiming that “customers were defrauded under the respective state’s deceptive trades act when Pacquiao didn’t disclose his injury before they made their purchases,” reports ESPN.

Even though the boxer reportedly checked “no” on a form that asked if he had a shoulder injury the day before the fight, Pacquiao’s team admitted that he injured his shoulder before the big match.

ESPN also reports a lawyer for Top Rank Boxing, Pacquiao’s promotional company, asserted that Pacquiao was examined by doctors and was cleared as physically able to fight. But, the attorney said, Pacquiao re-injured his shoulder during the Mayweather fight. In a joint statement, Top Rank stated Pacquiao’s “advisors notified the United States Anti-Doping Agency of the shoulder injury and the treatments being proposed by the doctors during training and on fight night.”

Read: Warren Buffett Is Helping Floyd Mayweather Turn $100M Into $1B

Pacquiao Admits He Was Only at 60% During Mayweather Fight

But by Pacquiao’s own admittance, he was not 100 percent heading into the ring on May 2. He said in an interview with Rappler.com, “If I were to grade my performance [in the Mayweather fight], I was just at 60 percent. My mind wanted to do more, but I couldn’t — outbalanced because I was just relying on my left.”

Not only could Pacquiao face a fine or even a suspension, but his $120 million earnings from the fight could also be threatened, reports ESPN.

Whatever the outcome of these suits, they definitely reflect the overall attitude that the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight was a letdown. But, Mayweather said he would be open to facing off against Pacquiao again in a year after the boxer has had time to heal from his shoulder surgery, which he underwent Wednesday, May 6.

Photo credit: Inboundpass/Flickr

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Manny Pacquiao Accused of Fraud in $400 Million Floyd Mayweather Fight

This article by Elyssa Kirkham first appeared on GoBankingRates.com and was distributed by the Personal Finance Syndication Network.