HBO GIVES GOLDEN BOY PROMOTIONS MIDDLE FINGER!
Los Angeles, CA– A recent development in boxing has occurred as Ken Hershman, head of HBO Sports has pulled the plug on Golden Boy Promotions. No longer, or a least for the time being, Golden Boy will no longer promote fights aired HBO, boxing’s premium network. For the last year it’s been clear that the majority of Golden Boy’s fighters have appeared exclusively on Showtime, and the rival network has all but froze out all other promotional entities.
No more Golden Boy on HBO
Showtime Sports VP, Stephen Espinoza, a former attorney for Golden Boy helped anchor one of the biggest deals in sports history recently as Showtime signed a six fight deal with boxing’s biggest star Floyd Mayweather(43-0, 26 KOs), with a $30 million guarantee per fight for the 36 year old Mayweather. The bouts reportedly must take place in a 30 month span. Mayweather faces a good but relatively unknown fighter in Robert Guerrero (31-1-1, 18 KOs) in his first Showtime PPV bout on May 4. Many have chastised HBO for giving Golden Boy the proverbial middle finger, however this move I believe sends a message to the masses that since HBO writes the biggest checks they wield the most power.
ALLOWING SHOWTIME FLOYD LOOKS BAD SHORT TERM, GOOD LONG TERM
On the surface it may appear that HBO has been swindled. However in this writer’s opinion Showtime is indeed taking a huge gamble here. Mayweather, the consummate professional and businessman is entitled to the best deal available. Since Showtime decided they want to be in the Mayweather business they’ve in essence rolled the dice. At the end of the day what Showtime is investing in
is a 36 year-old fighter who has a history of fighting only once a year since 2007. A major marketing campaign by its parent company CBS is in order, and while Floyd is an entertainer, there’s a reason he was the highest paid athlete in 2012, reportedly earning $85 million, and he made that money without one single endorsement deal. He just doesn’t resonate with the general public. It’s a great deal for “Money” Mayweather, a risky deal for Showtime to make with an aging athlete towards the end of his career. To top that off he doesn’t engage in the most memorable fights either. It’ll be interesting to see if the types of opponents will be available to generate the type of interest needed for Showtime to make bank on their investment. HBO, while losing Mayweather has money in their budget to build new talent or at least be able to wield muscle to make the best fights possible.
HBO NEED LOOK IN REAR VIEW WINDOW!
To be honest, Golden Boy Promotions and influential advisor Al Heymon felt entitled to dates to put on showcase bouts for their clients. All of their quality bouts had already been relegated to the Showtime airwaves. Keeping fighters like Keith Thurman (20-0, 18 KOs), Bernard Hopkins (53-6-2, 32 KOs) and Adrien Broner(26-0, 22 KOs) is not an $180 million gamble on an aging fighter. While Hopkins and Broner did good ratings, the 48 year-old Hopkins options are limited, and Broner’s handlers don’t appear to want to take a heavy risk at this point as he’s looking at WBA welter guy Paulie Malignaggi. Thurman, is a solid prospect, but the trend continues. He has been facing opponents where he’s a heavy favorite. Overall the HBO brass now can now try to make the best bouts possible without having to dole out dates for Golden Boy’s fighters, many who are Heymon’s clients. It will be interesting to see how these recent developments unfold and if Showtime has the money and dates available for Golden Boy to satisfy the fighters in their roster.
-Kevin Perry