The Inconvenient Truth
By Steve Kim (July 14, 2008)
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It wasn't too long ago that the president of HBO Sports, Ross Greenburg, stated that his network, after putting on ten pay-per-view events in 2006, vowed that they would go back to putting more of their marquee bouts on their 'Championship Boxing' series. The bottom line, everybody agreed, was that boxing simply doesn't have ten events big enough anymore to go on that particular platform that often. Perhaps the UFC could (and does), but not boxing.
And in 2007, HBO did have a strong rebound year, delivering bouts like Kelly Pavlik-Jermain Taylor and Joe Calzaghe-Mikkel Kessler last fall and limiting themselves to just seven pay-per-view events.
But it looks like Greenburg's promise is right up there with George Bush's (the first one) presidential proclamation of: REEEAAAAD MMMYYY LIPS: NOOOO NEEEEEW TAXES.
Because unfortunately, it looks like that trend was an aberration, as it looks like HBO and its various promotional partners will once again hit double digits in the number of pay-per-view promotions they will stage in 2008. It was once an unwritten rule that for pay-per-views shows to be maximized to their greatest potential, and to not cannibalize each other, that they had to be held about four-to-six weeks apart (or about one billing cycle with your cable/satellite company).
Well, it seems as that this unwritten rule has been crumpled up and thrown into the waste basket, as things come to a nadir when HBO Pay-Per-View will stage back-to-back events on September 13th and the 20th. First, Joel Casamayor and Juan Manuel Marquez box for the right to be called the lightweight champion of the world at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Then seven days later, Joe Calzaghe faces Roy Jones, reportedly at the famed Madison Square Garden in New York.
It's unprecedented and in many respects unbelievable. The corporate spiel will be that the shows hit different 'target audiences' and won’t really intersect with each other. In other words, one show is for Latinos, the other for everyone else. So in essence, a marginalized fanbase is now being segregated. I guess the belief is that boxing fans just can't be fans for the sake of liking boxing as a whole, but are now categorized into ethnic groupings. But that's just corporate spinning. This is nothing more than an attempt to justify this lunacy.
What's interesting is that when you look at the show on September 13th, which is being promoted by Golden Boy Promotions, that is put on the weekend of the Mexican Independence Day celebration. It continues a trend where this particular weekend is earmarked for a pay-per-view outing regardless of the fight. Once, this date was reserved for truly big fights involving stalwarts like Oscar De La Hoya and Julio Cesar Chavez. In the past few years it has featured shows that were headlined by Marco Antonio Barrera's rematch versus Rocky Juarez, Barrera's bout against Robbie Peden and last year - before its cancellation - Marquez's bout versus Jorge Barrios.
As one insider put it to me, "It's like they think they can put on anything and the Mexicans will just go out and get their Corona, chips and salsa and buy it." Perhaps in boxing, this weekend should be called 'Mexican Exploitation Weekend." But the numbers point out that the Latin fan is a bit more sophisticated than the decisions makers want to believe. The Barrera-Juarez rematch did well under 200,000 buys and other events in recent years that have taken place on this weekend that have not featured 'the Golden Boy' have done lukewarm business at best.
What's ironic is that while HBO and Golden Boy will harp on the fact they are trying to hit a 'target audience', Bob Arum, on that very same day, may in fact do a better job of that by staging his next edition of 'Latin Fury' featuring Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. from Mexico. Then you have the specter of one of the most anticipated college football games of the year taking place at the Coliseum in Los Angeles when the Ohio St. Buckeyes face the USC Trojans in a game that will most likely be aired on prime time by ABC. Marquez-Casamayor is a purist’s delight, but not necessarily an exciting matchup. In fact, it will pale in comparison to the fireworks that will be provided the week before on 'Boxing After Dark' when two other Golden Boy lightweights, Juan Diaz and Michael Katsidis get it on in Houston. It's interesting to note that the Cuban stylist, not too long ago, was deemed persona non-grata by HBO; now he is co-headlining a pay-per-view show for the network.
The next week sees Calzaghe-Jones, a fight, regardless of where the respective boxers are in their careers, that has to be on pay-per-view for several reasons. One, HBO simply may not have enough money to make this come to fruition on their regular airwaves. And Calzaghe, in two outings versus Kessler, and more recently, Hopkins, did abysmal ratings for 'the Heart and Soul of Boxing' despite exorbitant license fees. Finally, Jones' pay-per-view outing earlier this year with Felix Trinidad did over a half-million buys. While Jones may not have been the true A-side in that equation, it shows his brand name is still valuable.
Three weeks later from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Shane Mosley will take on perennial cannon fodder Ricardo Mayorga, which will cap a stretch where three pay-per-view promotions will take place within 30 days.
In the immortal words of one Sylvester the Cat: Sufferin' succotash.
Now, I'm not going to blame our departing Commander-in-Chief (I'll leave that up to Arum) but do the folks in charge of these decisions really believe in this economic climate, in the era where gas is well over four bucks a gallon, with rising food costs, that people across the board can really afford to even be boxing fans under these conditions? Disposable income is now, largely a myth (unless of course you're Christie Brinkley's ex-husband, Peter Cook, who spends up to three large a month on porn. He can definitely afford it and I suggest even getting a Maxboxing membership - at a very reasonable $5.99 a month - because he can certainly use the diversion. But I digress.)
The fights I mentioned above are good, solid prizefights. Nobody is questioning the quality of these bouts. But many years ago, under different leadership, they were bouts (sans Calzaghe-Jones) that were televised on HBO. The reality is this - while the pay-per-view realm can be the most lucrative for those involved, the downside is that it is the smallest platform on which a fighter is seen. After years and years of pay-per-view being the main mechanism for the best in boxing to be seen, there exists a huge vacuum in the the sport’s galaxy of stars today. The truth is, the average American - outside of Oscar De La Hoya, Mike Tyson and George Foreman (because they have his grill) - couldn't name you five other boxers.
Which is precisely the reason why the business keeps clinging to its old standbys till the bitter end. The average age of the six main event participants of those three pay-per-view shows (Marquez-34, Casamayor-36, Jones-39, Calzaghe-36, Mosley-36, Mayorga-34) is 36 years old. Last week a riveting Wimbledon final was staged between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer - two superb athletes at the height of their skills who put on an exhibition of tennis that highlighted their full arsenals. It was a brilliant athletic contest that could be appreciated by even the most casual fan of tennis. You get the sense that if HBO was in charge of that sport, we'd be given matches featuring Jimmy Connors, Bjorn Borg, Ivan Lendl and John McEnroe hitting lazy, soft ground strokes to each other, as they do their best to move their creaky, old bodies. To boot, they'd also be on pay-per-view.
It has to be noted that on September the 13th and October the 11th, while pay-per-view events are taking place, across the street at Showtime they are televising their own lightweight title contest between Nate Campbell and Joan Guzman, and then a month later, the long-awaited light heavyweight grudge match between Antonio Tarver and Chad Dawson, with a delay broadcast of Vitali Klitsckho's attempted (which is the key word here) challenge of WBC heavyweight champion Samuel Peter. These fights seem to be comparable in quality, the difference being some of them aren't going to cost you a tank of gas that it takes to fill up a Corolla (of which I just happen to drive.)
Showtime, to their credit, has done only one major pay-per-view event since 2005, last November's Mayorga-Vargas bout.
What has to be worrisome for the industry is that the ratings for HBO (which is closely identified with the sport and powerfully influential to its overall health) have been declining, even when they feature De La Hoya on a free preview weekend, and its other telecasts featuring its stars have played to a dwindling audience. Simply put, too many uninteresting contests and one-sided blowouts have eroded the public’s interest in the sport. But it's not just HBO's fault; the blame has to be shared by short-sighted promoters who will point the finger at everybody else - while committing the exact same infractions when they receive coveted dates and license fees. Then you have managers/advisers who leverage their positions and status within the networks and promotional firms to get mismatches aired constantly for their clients (which admittedly is their job, but there seems to be different sets of rules that exist for various individuals). And finally, boxers, who simply refuse to acknowledge the reality of the current marketplace to their own detriment.
Greed and short-sightedness have staggered boxing. And everyone has had a part in it.
And now more and more shows are going to the smallest audience possible, which is the pay-per-view realm. The bar has been lowered for what a major pay-per-view card is nowadays. And the business, unfortunately, might be going down with it.
Somewhere out there, Dana White and the Fertittas have to be getting a good chuckle out of this.
THE TREND
Here's a look at the major pay-per-view shows put on by HBO PPV since 2004.
2004 (seven shows)
May 15th- Antonio Tarver-Roy Jones II
June 5th: Oscar De La Hoya- Felix Sturm
July 31st: Erik Morales- Carlos Hernandez
September 18th: Bernard Hopkins- De La Hoya
October 2nd: Felix Trinidad- Ricardo Mayorga
November 27th: Erik Morales- Marco Antonio Barrera III
December 11th: Vitali Klitschko- Danny Williams
2005 (seven shows)
March 19th: Morales-Manny Pacquiao I
May 14th: Trinidad-Winky Wright
June 25th: Arturo Gatti-Floyd Mayweather
July 16th: Bernard Hopkins-Jermain Taylor I
September 20th: Barrera-Robbie Peden
October 1st- Tarver-Jones III
December 3rd: Taylor-Hopkins II
2006 (ten shows)
January 21st: Pacquiao-Morales II
February 25th: Shane Mosley- Fernando Vargas I
April 8th: Floyd Mayweather- Zab Judah
May 6th: De La Hoya-Mayorga
June 10th: Antonio Tarver-Hopkins
July 15th: Mosley-Vargas II
August 12th: Hasim Rahman-Oleg Maskaev
September 16th: Barrera-Rocky Juarez II
November 4th: Mayweather- Carlos Baldomir
November 18th: Pacquiao-Morales III
2007 (seven shows)
March 17th: Barrera-Juan Manuel Marquez
May 5th: De La Hoya-Mayweather
June 9th: Cotto-Judah
July 21st: Hopkins-Wright
October 6th: Pacquiao-Barrera II
November 10th: Cotto-Mosley
December 8th: Mayweather-Ricky Hatton
2008
January 19th: Jones-Trinidad
February 16th- Pavlik-Taylor II
March 15th: Pacquiao-Marquez II
June 28th: Pacquiao-David Diaz
July 26th: Antonio Margarito-Cotto
September 13th- Casamayor-Marquez
September 29th: Jones-Calzaghe
October 11th: Mosley-Mayorga
November 15th- Manny Pacquiao vs TBA (Arum is still undecided whether this show will be on HBO or Showtime. But past history indicates HBO)
December 6th: De La Hoya vs TBA
A few thoughts:
- Take away the events featuring De La Hoya and Trinidad, you'll be hard-pressed to find any events that did 500,000 and above. Most of the shows have done in the range of 250-350,000 buys, which tells you that it probably constitutes your core pay-per-view audience for the most part.
- Take away the fights involving Erik Morales, and just how many riveting pay-per-view main events do you see listed? Yeah, 'El Terrible' will be missed greatly.
- The last two Showtime pay-per-view events before Mayorga-Vargas featured Mike Tyson- Kevin McBride and the rematch between Jose Luis Castillo and Diego Corrales.
- Here's a question for you guys, if you could only buy one pay-per-view show the rest of the year, starting with Margarito-Cotto on July 26th and ending with De La Hoya's December 6th swan song, which would it be? And which shows will you purchase, overall?
HAMBURG-ER
A few things popped into my mind as I watched Wladimir Klitschko stop Tony Thompson in eleven frames this past weekend. First, from what I understand, HBO was at the mercy of German television, but geez, I felt for a while that I was watching the Super Bowl pre-game show with how long it took for the fighters to actually get to the center of the ring and touch gloves.
I love HBO's features and vignettes (hey, I learned Emanuel Steward is really from West Virginia, who knew?) but 45 minutes is a bit much, even for me. I would've preferred HBO starting the broadcast a half-hour later (with a re-run of 'Entourage' - I can never get enough of Ari Gold - leading into the telecast.)
Secondly, I've mentioned this before, but I'll say it again, the UFC, the WWE and European fight cards do a much better job of packaging and presenting fights inside the arena than their American counterparts in boxing, which is usually just a stale, boring, casino atmosphere, with at most a deejay spinning wax in between long, insufferable delays in-between fights.
In Europe they have some elaborate introductions that feature laser shows, fireworks, live bands and specially built walkways and platforms. It's quite an atmosphere they create. There should be more to 'promoting' than just collecting a license fee and money from a casino and then just sitting in the front row. I think the European promoters seem to understand that and they create a spectacle that the fans seem to enjoy - which is one reason why boxing is actually thriving out there in those parts.
FINAL FLURRIES
For the record, I had Vai Sikahema and the under against Jose Canseco....18-year old bantam Robert Marroquin, who improved to 3-0 with a stoppage of Roberto Perez on Friday night, is a prospect to keep an eye on....I thought Kendall Gill did a fine job of co-hosting FNF on ESPN2 with Brian Kenny.....Has Chavez Jr. already hit his ceiling? He caught more than Ivan Rodriguez against Matt Vanda on Saturday night. As for the decision, where the deciding vote in a split verdict was 100-90, you know it's unpopular when debris is hurled from the audience over a Chavez victory in Mexico.....According to a story written by Robert Morales of the LA Daily News this past weekend, a 24/7 will be done for Calzaghe-Jones.....Recommended reading, Thomas Hauser’s latest piece on Secondsout.com, 'The Perfect Punch', which details some of the ongoing business at HBO......
For Questions or Comments
E-Mail Steve Kim at k9kim@maxboxing.com
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