Floyd Mayweather tops Forbes highest paid athletes list 2012; Manny Pacquiao is number 2

Floyd Mayweather has been named as the number 1 Highest Paid Athlete in the World according to the 2012 Forbes list. Forbes used the earnings of athletes over the past 12 months, including both their direct earnings and winnings, as well as sponsorships and other secondary income derived from their sporting careers. At the end of the day, at the top of the 2012 Forbes Highest Paid Athletes list was Floyd Mayweather, and guess what? Manny Pacquiao came in 2nd, giving the boxing world a 1-2 punch of high earners at the very top of this list. According to Forbes, Mayweather raked in a cool $85 million in the last year, based on his two fights against Victor Ortiz and Miguel Cotto. That's an average of $42.5 million for each fight, and placed him easily at the number 1 position on the list. He has been a part of the 4 highest grossing non-heavyweight fights in history, including the highest grossing bout of all-time, his 2007 match against Oscar De La Hoya. Pacquiao came in 2nd, wit...