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Tickets for Mayweather vs. Marquez Super-fight Go On Sale May 22

Floyd “Money” Mayweather has returned to the sport of boxing and will put his undefeated record on the line when he faces the dangerous and highly touted five-time world champion Juan Manuel “Dinamita” Marquez in MAYWEATHER vs. MARQUEZ “Number One/Numero Uno” Saturday, July 18 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Tickets priced at $1,000, $750, $600, $300 and $150, not including applicable service charges, go on sale Friday, May 22 at 10 a.m. Ticket sales at $1,000, $750, $600 and $300 are limited to 10 per person and ticket sales at $150 are limited to two (2) per person, with a total ticket limit of 10 per person. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also are available for purchase at www.mgmgrand.com or www.ticketmaster.com.

A 1996 Olympic Bronze medalist for the United States, Floyd “Money” Mayweather (39-0, 25 KOs) has since gone on to strike gold in the professional ranks, winning six world titles in five weight classes to firmly establish himself as one of the best fighters of his era. In his 18th professional fight, Mayweather won his first world title at the age of 21 by stopping Genaro Hernandez for the WBC World Super Featherweight title in 1998. The Grand Rapids, Mich. native defended that title eight times before he moved up to the lightweight division and took the 135-pound belt from Jose Luis Castillo in 2002. He also defeated Arturo Gatti and Zab Judah for the Junior Welterweight and Welterweight world titles, respectively.

When Marquez defeated Oscar de la Hoya in May 2007 for the World Junior Middleweight title in a record-setting super-fight, the world truly got to see what Mayweather is all about. In his last fight, on December 8, 2007, Mayweather made another statement to the world as he knocked out Ricky “Hitman” Hatton in the 10th round, handing the British superstar his first professional defeat. After the bout, Mayweather, who has achieved crossover fame as a member of the cast of the hit show “Dancing with the Stars” and as a participant in WWE’s “Wrestlemania,” announced his retirement from boxing but left the door open for a return if the right challenge presented itself and on July 18, the 32-year-old Las Vegas resident will come back to face Juan Manuel Marquez.

In an era of great Mexican fighters such as Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales, Mexico City’s Juan Manuel “Dinamita” Marquez (50-4-1, 37 KOs) has made it clear throughout the last few years that he is truly the best of the bunch. Long revered by boxing purists as one of the greatest, the three-division champion Marquez won 29 of his first 30 professional bouts before finally getting a world title shot in 1999. Marquez lost the fight in a controversial decision to Freddie Norwood but went on to win every fight for the next seven years and eventually won the IBF World Featherweight title against Manuel Medina in 2003. In November 2003, Marquez unified the titles when he defeated Derrick “Smoke” Gainer and captured the WBA world featherweight title. His second title defense in 2004 against Manny Pacquiao may be his most memorable as he rose from three, first-round knockdowns to roar back and earn a draw many observers believe he truly won.

Marquez lost his belt via decision to Chris John in 2006 but immediately returned to form and scored a 12-round win over Barrera in March 2007 to win the WBC 130-pound world title. In 2008, Marquez and Pacquiao met again in another memorable bout where Marquez lost in a disputed 12-round split decision to the Filipino superstar. Undeterred, Marquez moved up to the 135-pound weight class in September 2008 and stunned the boxing world by handing Joel Casamayor his first knockout defeat to win the Ring Magazine World Lightweight Championship. It was hard to top such a victory but the 35-year-old did just that in his most recent fight on February 28, stopping former three-time world champion Juan Diaz in the ninth round to add the WBO and WBA World Lightweight belts to his trophy case. On July 18 he looks to further cement his legacy with a win against Mayweather.

Mayweather vs. Marquez: “Number One/Numero Uno,” is promoted by Mayweather Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions in association with Marquez Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate and Southwest Airlines. The 12-round bout will take place July 18 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas and will be televised live on HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9 p.m. EST / 6 p.m. PST.

The Mayweather vs. Marquez pay-per-view telecast, beginning at 9 p.m. EST / 6 p.m. PST, has a suggested retail price of $49.95, will be produced and distributed by HBO Pay-Per-View and will be available to more than 71 million pay-per-view homes. The telecast will be available in HD-TV for those viewers who can receive HD. HBO Pay-Per-View is the leading supplier of event programming to the pay-per-view industry. For Mayweather vs. Marquez fight week updates, log on to www.hbo.com.