HBO Sets Mayweather-Pacquiao Special

HBO Tuesday announced it will develop a special profiling the May 2 Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao pay-per-view fight.

The one-hour special, Mayweather/Pacquiao: At Last will premiere April 18 following the network’s Boxing After Dark live show and will follow Pacquiao as he prepares for the much anticipated boxing event. The special will also air in primetime on HBO April 23, said the network.

“This is the mega-fight fans have been anticipating for many years, and we are thrilled to chronicle Manny Pacquiao’s path to this defining moment in his career,” says Rick Bernstein, executive producer, HBO Sports in a statement. “This special will provide viewers with a narrative of how this fight came to be and spotlight Team Pacquiao’s preparations heading into the biggest challenge Manny has confronted in the ring. It will be a terrific primer for any viewer eager to go behind the scenes in the lead-up to May 2.”

The announcement comes a week after Showtime, which will co-distribute the PPV fight with HBO, announced a four-part documentary, Inside Mayweather vs. Pacquiao debuting April 18, that will showcase the undefeated Mayweather’s preparation for what is expected to be the biggest pay-per-view boxing event in history.   

R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.