Click to enlarge the most recent odds sheet for Saturday’s super welterweight title fight between Floyd Mayweather and Miguel Cotto.

LAS VEGAS — As tonight’s Floyd Mayweather-Miguel Cotto fight draws near, the most recent odds from the MGM Grand sports book are reflecting moderate late action on the underdog.

Mayweather remains a lopsided favorite in the super welterweight title fight (9 p.m. ET, $59.95, HBO PPV), though the odds against Cotto have shortened to 5-to-1 at press time — down from 6-to-1 earlier this week.

The trend should come as no surprise to anyone who attended Friday’s weigh-in, where crowd support skewed heavily in support of Cotto. More than 6,000 fans booed lustily when footage of Mayweather’s knockout of Mexican-American champion Victor Ortiz was shown on dual projection screens, stoking passions that had already been running high during Cinco de Mayo weekend.

Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, who opened as a 10-to-1 favorite against Shane Mosley in tonight’s co-feature bout, was a 9-to-1 favorite on Saturday, one of the busiest days of the year at the 5,300-square-foot betting arena.

Hordes of soccer fans made for an energetic, standing-room-only environs Saturday morning, as Chelsea’s 2-1 victory over Liverpool in the FA Cup Final was broadcast in nearly half of the thirty-six 60-inch plasma televisions and twenty-four 42-inch screens. Even at 11 a.m. local time, the line of bettors extended far past the windows outside the state-of-the-art betting parlor, thanks to a full slate of events including tonight’s fights, the Kentucky Derby, the NBA and NHL playoff and Major League Baseball games.

One middle-aged punter insisted the smart money on tonight’s Mayweather-Cotto fight was the rounds proposition: If the fight ends before the 10th round, a $100 bet returns $190 in winnings. If the fight extends past the 10th, it requires a wager of $230 to win $100.

“Cotto’s a bleeder and he’ll be there to hit,” said Stephen Thompson, a longtime fight fan (and Chelsea supporter) visiting from London. “I see cuts playing a role in the fight and the referee will have no choice but to stop it.”

– Bryan Armen Graham

Floyd Mayweather (left) and Miguel Cotto had a heated exchange during Friday afternoon’s weigh-in. (Tom Hogan/Hoganphotos/Golden Boy Promotions)

LAS VEGAS — Floyd Mayweather often says boos don’t bother him. All he hears is the ch-ching of a cash register.

Surely then Mayweather heard a gold mine during Friday afternoon’s weigh-in at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, where a standing-room-only crowd of more than 6,000 fans made no secret of their antipathy for the most divisive figure in boxing today.

Hours after it was announced Mayweather will earn at least $32 million for Saturday’s super welterweight title fight — a guaranteed figure expected to swell to more than $50 million after the pay-per-view receipts are counted — the undefeated 35-year-old tipped the scales at a career-high 151 pounds. Cotto weighed in at 154, coming in right at the division limit.

The tense staredown that followed seemed to stretch into eternity, with Mayweather chomping on gum centimeters from Cotto’s emotionless face, surrounded by a maelstrom of team members and hangers-on. And then Floyd started talking.

“I just told him, ‘When you’re facing Floyd Mayweather, you’re facing the best,’” said Mayweather, a 7.5-to-1 favorite according to the latest odds at the MGM Grand sports book. “I don’t feel like I’m just any ordinary opponent and I don’t want him thinking I’m just an ordinary opponent.”

Said Cotto: “I’m here to fight. If he wants to run, I’m ready for that. If he wants to face me, I’m ready for that. I’m ready for everything.”

Fans had started lining up as early as 7 a.m. local time, six hours before the doors opened for the weigh-in, which was free. They carried signs, flags and brought noisemakers, often jeering Mayweather when his image was shown on the large projection screens. Several hundred were turned away from the gate hours before the first fighters hit the scales at 2:45 p.m.

Earlier, Shane Mosley came in a half-pound over the 154-pound limit for his super welterweight title fight with Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, who hit 154 on the nose. The 40-year-old Mosley, who appeared shocked when informed he was over, returned to the scale a half-hour later and made weight.

– Bryan Armen Graham

Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez is putting his WBC super welterweight title and 39-0-1 record on the line against Shane Mosley. (Steve Marcus/Reuters)

LAS VEGAS — It was strange seeing this Shane Mosley, the former three-division champion and pound-for-pound king sitting on the dais for an undercard press conference, a high-profile name being fed to a rising young star. Years earlier, Mosley stood side by side with Oscar De La Hoya, combatants in two memorable fights. On Thursday, De La Hoya stood next to Mosley again, this time in his capacity as a promoter to introduce Mosley as the dangerous opponent for prized prospect Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.

“Shane Mosley beat me twice,” De La Hoya said. “I know how tough a fighter Shane can be.”

This is what Mosley (46-7-1) is now, an opponent, a prospective notch on a young fighter’s belt. The multi-million dollar paydays are gone, replaced by a $650,000 purse he will pocket to face Alvarez (39-0-1) on Saturday night at the MGM Grand (9 p.m. ET, HBO PPV). They are gone, and many expected Mosley to be gone, too. Mosley has struggled since his stunning win over Antonio Margarito in 2009. He lost a lopsided decision to Floyd Mayweather in 2010 and looked sluggish in a draw against journeyman Sergio Mora later that year. He managed to land another high-profile fight with Manny Pacquiao last May, but was on his heels all night en route to another one-sided defeat.

Mosley claims there were reasons for those poor performances — injuries, distractions, whatever. He claims he is healthy for this training camp for the first time in a long time and that any lingering problems are behind him. He claims that, at 40, he still has a good career ahead of him.

“The past is the past,” Mosley said. “This is now. I’m as healthy as can be. God works in mysterious ways.”

In making a comeback, Mosley may have found the right opponent. Alvarez is a star: young, good looking, full of charisma. But his boxing credentials are limited. He was hurt in a 2010 win over Jose Miguel Cotto. He was hit with a lot of punches in a 2011 win over Matthew Hatton. He was outboxed for several rounds last September by journeyman Alfonso Gomez.

“He’s a star,” said Mosley’s trainer, Nazim Richardson. “But if Jennifer Lopez announced she was fighting next month, I’m pretty sure she could do the same pay-per-view numbers. He’s a good looking kid. He’s a legitimate rock star. But we are going to find out if he can fight on this level.”

Indeed, neither Mosley or Richardson appear particularly impressed by Alvarez. Richardson said Alvarez was “good at fighting great fighter’s brothers,” a nod to his wins over Jose Cotto (brother of Saturday night’s headliner Miguel Cotto) and Matthew Hatton (brother of former 140-pound champion Ricky Hatton). Mosley called Alvarez, “a great young fighter.”

“But,” Mosley added. “He shouldn’t be in the ring with me.”

Recently, Mosley has struggled with speed (Pacquiao) and quickness (Mayweather). Alvarez has neither. Mosley has historically had success against Mexican fighters (Margarito, De La Hoya, Fernando Vargas, among others). And while Alvarez doesn’t fight like a traditional Mexican (“He moves around the ring a little, trying to show you he’s different,” Richardson said.) there will likely come a time when the two stand toe-to-toe and trade.

Then, Richardson and Mosley believe, they will have the advantage.

“Shane has to apply his IQ,” Richardson said. “He has to be more intelligent and a step ahead of him. If Canelo is as special as they say he is, he can beat Shane Mosley. If he’s not, Shane is going to knock him the f— out.”

– Chris Mannix

Jessie Vargas (left) and Josesito Lopez exchange blows during their junior welterweight fight on the Mayweather-Ortiz undercard. (Al Bello/Getty Images)

WBC super welterweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (38-0-1, 28 KOs) showed an impressive finishing kick against challenger Alfonso Gomez (23-5-2, 12 KOs), roaring to a sixth-round knockout victory after a series of uncharacteristically sluggish rounds. The referee’s stoppage seemed premature, but Gomez was concilatory if resigned. (“It is what it is,” he said.) The last of eight undercard bouts was simulcast from Staples Center in Los Angeles. Here at the MGM Grand, four HD screens descended from the rafters to give ticketholders an excellent view. (Here’s are close and wide views of the setup.)

Mexican legend Erik Morales (51-7, 35 KOs) stopped Pablo Cesar Cano, Jr. (22-1-1, 17 KOs) for the vacant WBC super lightweight title when referee Kenny Bayless halted the action between the 10th and 11th rounds. Morales, 35, overcame a slow start to find range with his jab — he landed 100 of 292 jabs (34 percent) compared to 82 of 368 for Cano (22 percent) — and later worked a large gash under the 22-year-old’s left eye that bloodied his face badly. With the victory, Morales became the first-ever Mexican fighter to capture titles in four different weight classes, though more than a few questioned the validity of the title — the WBC stripped Timothy Bradley of the belt a mere six months after he won it from Devon Alexander in the first major fight of 2011.

In the first televised bout, Jessie Vargas (17-0, 9 KOs) of Las Vegas escaped with a controversial split decision over Josesito Lopez (29-4, 17 KOs) of Riverside, Calif., in a 10-round welterweight fight. Lopez applied pressure early and seemed in control even before Vargas, a Floyd Mayweather protege, had a point deducted for a low blow in the sixth. Duane Ford (95-94) and Patricia Morse Jarman (96-93) scored it to Vargas, while Dick Houck had it 95-94 to Lopez. ”He was a hell of a fighter and I give him nothing but respect,” said Vargas, who landed 167 of 851 punches compared to 122 of 509 for Lopez. “I think I fell into his game plan a little bit, but my corner straightened that out by the end of the fight.”

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Watch the final press Floyd Mayweather-Victor Ortiz press conference here on Wednesday (3:45 p.m. ET/12:45 p.m. PT). Mayweather, Ortiz, Erik Morales, Pablo Cesar Cano, Jessie Vargas and Josesito Lopez will be together at the Hollywood Theatre at the MGM Grand (with Canelo Alvarez and Alfonso Gomez joining via satellite from Los Angeles) to discuss their respective fights.