Getting up to speed on Floyd Mayweather vs Manny Pacquiao (and Guillermo vs Justin Bieber)

After five years of boxing fans clamoring for a Floyd Mayweather vs Manny Pacquiao fight, it was announced in February that the two will finally be ready to rumble on May 2nd. Here we recap what’s transpired to date in the buildup to the ultimate pound-for-pound punch fest.

That time Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather ended up at the same basketball game: http://t.co/dYU7xkiJrD pic.twitter.com/M7AVP87nzO

— SB Nation (@SBNation) February 21, 2015

Firstly, the fight may never have been agreed upon if it were not for a meeting at a Miami Heat game.

Happenstance had the fighters seated court side opposite one other during the Heat’s January 27 home game versus the Milwaukee Bucks. The rest, as they say, is history.

Shortly after the big fight was confirmed, Pacquiao revealed that he was recording his own entrance song unimaginably entitled “I Will Fight for the Phillipines.”

Both fighters eloquently thanked everyone under the sun while behaving like perfect gentlemen at last week’s press conference for the fight of the century.

"Justin Bieber looked so cool getting up on stage with Mayweather at that joint press conference" said nobody ever pic.twitter.com/58xpcOPG5w

— BreatheSport (@BreatheSport) March 13, 2015

Jimmy Kimmel sent Guillermo to the red carpet at the press conference where he was able to get each fighter to pick themselves (gasp) as the winner of the upcoming fight. Afterward, in a surprise appearance on Kimmel’s show, Pacquiao relegated the duty of beating up Justin Bieber to Guillermo.

Dana White, president of UFC, while planning to attend the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight, wished that it had happened five years ago when both fighters were still in their prime.

White felt the Vegas betting-line favoring Mayweather by 2-to-1 was appropriate, though he counts himself as a Pac-man fan.

No fighter is as familiar with Pacquiao as Juan Manuel Marquez. He first faced the Filipino fighter in 2004, battling to a draw at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Four years later, they fought again and Marquez lost by split decision. Then in 2011, he lost a second time to Pac-man in a hugely controversial majority decision (voted as “Robbery of the Year” by readers of The Ring magazine). Finally, on December 8, 2012, Marquez defeated Pacquiao by knockout in the 6th round.

While Marquez has had only a single fight against Mayweather — a loss by unanimous decision in 2009 — he thinks the brash Michigander will avoid a brawl and prevail over Pacquiao with his defense.

Miguel Cotto fought Pacquiao late in 2009, losing by TKO in the 12th round. In 2012, he went the distance with Mayweather, but lost by unanimous decision. Unlike Marquez, he thinks Pacquiao’s desire to bring the fight to Mayweather will tag the welterweight with his first loss.