Floyd Mayweather vs. John Gotti III: Main card, start time, main event walkouts, and more
Boxing legend Floyd Mayweather has embarked on a journey of competing in exhibition bouts after announcing his retirement from the professional realm after the blockbuster clash against Conor McGregor. However, his last matchup turned out to be a chaotic spectacle with verbal fencing, and an all-out brawl.
Mayweather took on John Gotti III, the grandson of American mafioso and boss of the Gambino crime family John Gotti, in an exhibition boxing match on June 11, 2023. The fight was stopped after excessive trash-talking and overturned as a no-contest. Several brawls subsequently broke out backstage and the hostile nature between the camps set the tone for the rematch.
The rematch is set to go down on Aug. 24, 2024, at Arena CDMX in Mexico City, Mexico. The fight will be contested across eight rounds and is labeled as an exhibition contest.
The event is expected to start at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT with the main event ring walks expected at around 11:06 p.m. ET/ 6:06 p.m. PT. Fight fans can stream the event live on DAZN in over 200 countries across the globe on pay-per-view.
Check out the full card for the Floyd Mayweather vs. John Gotti billing:
Floyd Mayweather vs. John Gotti III; Exhibition bout
Victor Ortiz vs. Rodrigo Damian Coria; Exhibition bout
Alan David Picasso vs. Azat Hovhannisyan: Super bantamweight
Luis Rodriguez vs. Cesar Vaca; Super middleweight
Aaron Silva vs. Alfonso Flores; Super middleweight
Silvia Torres vs. Cecilia Rodriguez; Women's light flyweight
John Gotti III previews rematch against Floyd Mayweather
The upcoming Floyd Mayweather vs. John Gotti III fight involves considerably higher stakes than a regular exhibition bout.
Their first encounter in June of 2023 ended by disqualification 58 seconds into the sixth round after referee Kenny Bayliss repeatedly warned both fighters to stop engaging in trash-talking. When the fight was stopped, Gotti continued to throw punches which escalated the matter into a full-blown melee.
While previewing the upcoming clash, Gotti asserted that it will be a "hell of a fight." He said:
"This fight can dictate the course of my future in the fight game. He’s going to be met with bad intentions. After everything that happened last time, we’ll see who backs up first. This is going to be a hell of a fight. It’s going to be a very interesting night. Don’t let Floyd fool you–he’s taking this seriously, he’s coming to fight.” [H/t: Sports Illustrated]
He added:
“I’ve seen his best, he hasn’t seen mine. Last time, I was timid. He’ll see the real me on August 24, and I’m intrigued to see how he handles that. Fate gave me a second fight, and I’m making the most of it.”