Last week, I lamented in this column that we boxing fans have very little to look forward to in the upcoming schedule. Thankfully, that has changed. Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia have both taken to social media to announce that everything has been agreed for the pair to face off next year.
No official date or location has been confirmed, although it is revealed that the two will engage in separate rounds of adjustments in January. What’s interesting about this announcement is how the people involved seem to hold off on the massive following both Garcia and Davis have on social media – their accounts being the first to share the news. .
According to reports — and tweets from executives from both companies — DAZN and Showtime have teamed up on the deal for what appears to be a shared PPV. It’s always a reason to celebrate when direct competitors, namely broadcasters, can team up to create big fights.
Looks like we’re getting closer to another excellent lightweight clash: Devin Haney vs Vasily Lomachenko. Top Rated boss Bob Arum told BoxingScene that both sides are in good faith and negotiations are progressing well. He also talked about how he hopes to broadcast the match on ESPN, instead of PPV.
“My hope is to do as few pay-per-view matches as possible,” he said.
“I really believe that setting these battles to pay per view is not a wise thing to do. Now, others may find this difficult. It’s not a wise thing to do because people don’t buy pay per view. And it costs a lot of money to do that. Even if the boxers don’t get the guarantee, they’ll hate you then because they don’t make any money.”
He cites piracy and the fact that fewer and fewer people are inviting groups of friends to watch PPV together as the main reasons behind the drop in viewing figures for these shows. He is referring to the US market, where the price of a single PPV is around $80.
It’s encouraging to hear such a powerful figure in the sport speak out against the relentless increase in the number of PPV events held each year and the way he hopes to deliver those matches. big fight for as many spectators as possible.
Of course, we’ve heard all of this before from various people in the boxing world. Obviously, there is a place for PPV events in boxing but there needs to be some control over how many shows are held behind such a fee wall each year.
broadcasts
All that said, it’s great to see Artur Beterbiev defend his light-heavyweight belt against Anthony Yarde in London next year, with BT Sport choosing not to broadcast the match on its PPV channel. That is admirable and commendable.
In the current boxing environment, it wouldn’t be strange if this bout was on PPV – in fact, many were even expecting it. It feels a little strange praising a major sports broadcaster for basically doing the bare minimum and not charging us extra for a fight that doesn’t guarantee it, but here we are.
Sadly, it was another disappointing weekend for DAZN. Yet another YouTuber boxing card on the streaming service, which featured some very bad boxing attack attempts (clips went viral) as well as Hasim Rahman Jnr being blocked during the main event by a mixed martial artist 94 lbs heavier than him.
However, the main event on another DAZN card drew the most criticism. Jaime Munguia took down Gonzalo Coria too hard in three rounds, then called in Gennadiy Golovkin.
This whole thing is a huge waste of time. Who at DAZN signed this main event? DAZN’s schedule has recently come under fire and some of the criticism has been a bit exaggerated – DAZN has aired some really good cards and has some interesting cards in the works, but Munguia-Coria is unlikely justifiable.
There was no way this war would be broadcast on a major television station. The Golden Boy promoters also have questions to answer. Furthermore, Munguia has been flourishing in his career for some time now, albeit as an exciting talent that continues to improve. Fights like this are a disadvantage for him and the fans.
Terence Crawford sat down with Max Kellerman on ESPN’s “Max On Boxing” to discuss his career and “legacy” in the sport. The 35-year-old claims that not fighting heavyweight rival Errol Spence Jnr before retiring will not damage his legacy.
That is the best doubt. Crawford is an extraordinary talent and has achieved great things in boxing, but his career lacks a truly clear victory. Although he had conquered other divisions before, he couldn’t claim to be the best 147lber on the planet until he fought Spence.
Crawford isn’t trying to downplay the importance of the battle with Spence, but he does cite other major fights that never happened. Kellerman intelligently countered that the people Crawford mentioned, including Sugar Ray Leonard, had engaged in major battles other than those that had failed.
The disturbing thing about Crawford’s comments is how final they seem. He sounds like a man who has accepted that he will never fight Spence, which would be really embarrassing for the sport and also speaks to how inefficient the systems are in the game. boxing when facilitating the biggest competitions.
Boxing on the box
November 25
Harlem Eubank-Tom Farrell
Channel 5
Coverage starts at 9pm
November 26
Dillian Whyte-Jermaine Franklin
DAZN
Coverage starts at 7pm
Zach Parker-John Ryder
BT Sports 1
Coverage starts at 7pm
November 27
Regis Prograis-Jose Zepeda
FITETV
Coverage starts at 2am
Mikail Lawal-David Jamieson
Sky Sports Gymnasium
Coverage starts at 3pm
