Leonard Ellerbe says two “very recognizable” NFL players coming to see Floyd Mayweather fight Saturday

Kevin Iole

LAS VEGAS -- NFL coaches aren't particularly known for giving their players a lot of leeway on the night before a game.

But Leonard Ellerbe, the CEO of Mayweather Promotions, told Yahoo! Sports on Thursday that two "very recognizable" NFL players are going to fly to Las Vegas to watch Floyd Mayweather fight Canelo Alvarez Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden.

Ellerbe refused to identify the players, but he said the players contacted Mayweather directly and told him they were planning to attend the fight despite having games on Sunday.

Presumably, they are players who are playing on the West Coast. West Coast games on Sunday pit the Lions at the Cardinals; Jaguars at Raiders and 49ers at Seahawks. The 49ers-Seahawks' game is the NBC game and will start at 8:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, so it would make sense it the players Ellerbe is talking about are from one of those two teams.

"They have their curfews and everything, but my understanding is that a couple of guys are taking PJs [private jets] in and maybe got permission from I don't know who," Ellerbe said. "I can't say who, but there are two prominent guys I know. From what I have been told [from Mayweather], that is what is happening."

Ellerbe said that the Lakers' Kobe Bryant "definitely" will attend the fight. He said Mayweather's close friend, LeBron James, won't be at the fight, but called Mayweather to tell him and had a good excuse.

James is getting married in San Diego on Saturday, Ellerbe said.

"He called Floyd and told him he was getting married and Floyd was joking with him and said,'Oh, so I see how it is. You're getting married on my fight night,' " Mayweather said.

Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer said as soon as the sad news that Golden Boy president Oscar De La Hoya admitted himself into a rehab center on Tuesday, he was getting calls from celebrities inquiring about De La Hoya's ticket.

One of them will go to light heavyweight champion Bernard Hopkins, a partner in Golden Boy who usually sits in Row 2. So Schaefer will have one seat in the front row and one in Row 2 to play with for the most in-demand tickets in years.

"It's going to be fun to see who gets that seat," Schaefer said.

Some seats that Showtime had killed because they were going to have obstructed views because of the cameras have been released and quickly sold. That brought the paid gate, already a record, up to $20.003 million.