Hotel room rates in Las Vegas for tonight and tomorrow have dropped from $558 to $338 a night at the 113 hotels served by Vegas.com. Rates for the "cheapest rooms" at MGM Grand "plummeted" yesterday from more than $1,500 to $499. Vegas.com Business Development Manager Vanessa Doleshal: "They thought the demand was going to be more." The Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Manny Pacquiao fight is "expected to attract 336,000 visitors to Las Vegas this weekend" with occupancy at 95-99% (LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL, 5/1).
The LAS VEGAS SUN's Ray Brewer writes, "Let's show we have the capacity to handle an event of this magnitude and prove we can be a major sports city. The hockey puck is dropping soon, right?" (LAS VEGAS SUN, 5/1). Caesars Entertainment Senior VP Phillip Auerbach said, "Looking back over the last several fights, the Super Bowl, the last couple of New Year's Eves, this is going to eclipse all that" (USA TODAY, 5/1).
WALL STREET JOURNAL looks at the fight and the hype around it with the header, "The Absurdity Is At Hand." LAS VEGAS SUN goes with. "For Boxing And Its Fans, Fight Is A Link To Mainstream America." The ROCHESTER DEMOCRAT & CHRONICLE: "Fight Of The Century Nice, But Won't Save Boxing." BUFFALO NEWS: "Is Boxing Down For The Count?" L.A. TIMES: "Manager Al Haymon Has Helped Floyd Mayweather Jr. Reach Huge Payday." SI.com runs a joint interview with broadcasters Jim Lampley and Al Bernstein, who will call the fight.
