TO BUY OR NOT TO BUY
By Jason Aniel
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 20 Sep 2009
Las Vegas, NV—That is the question many boxing fans are asking themselves on the day of the much-hyped “Number One/Numero Uno” Pay-Per-View showdown between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Juan Manuel Marquez. The PPV is priced at $49.99 and will include three undercard bouts. In the past several months, much has been speculated about the financial success of this fight. When the fight was postponed back in June, theories that a lack of ticket sales and interest forced the promoters to push the fight back to a historically profitable date, September 19, 2009 (Mexican Independence Weekend). Even this week, there have been rumblings that Golden Boy Promotions have been giving away tickets to fill up the arena. As I write this column, tickets as low as $300 are still available to purchase on ticketmaster.com. Floor seats can be bought as low as $1500 a ticket (just $500 above face value. It’s safe to say that not many scalpers will roam the MGM Grand looking to make a profit. It was only on Monday when closed circuit tickets went on sale.
However, the success of the promotion is mostly based on the number of PPV buys. While the live gate is important, the fighters and promoters break the bank when the PPV numbers come in. A fight fan may not be willing to shell out $1000-$5000 for a weekend in Las Vegas and to watch the fight live, but $50 and 10 friends makes Saturday night a “Fight Night”.
Now if you still haven’t pressed the order button on your remote to buy the fight, here is something you might want to consider (this is for you Manny Pacquiao fan). Mayweather has stated that he will not accept a 50/50 split with Pacquiao. He claims that since he’s the biggest name and money earner in the sport (based on PPV buys) and Pacquiao really doesn’t have any leverage to claim half of the pie. A low buy rate for today’s PPV could bring Mayweather back to earth a bit and make negotiations with Pacquiao more realistic.
Also consider the overall health of the sport. All you hear in the mainstream media is that boxing is a dying sport. Mayweather is one of the biggest names in the sport of boxing. It’s important for the sport that people have interest and support the biggest fights of the year. Mayweather was an original participate to HBO’s reality show 24/7. His success in that show allowed HBO to continue the series and Pacquiao benefited from it. A high number of buys helps all of boxing and could generate more interest in Pacquiao’s next fight in November.
Finally, look at the fight on paper. You have two natural counter punchers who typically go 12 rounds in their fights. Mayweather has never been an exciting fighter to watch. His skills and dominance take over the fight to the point where every round is the same as the previous round. Marquez has been in very exciting fights but they were always against pressure fighters like Pacquiao and Juan Diaz. If blood and guts are personal requirements to buy a PPV, then you might want to skip this. However, consider the undercard that features three good fights that may result in all out wars. This is one of the best undercards on a major PPV in a real longtime. But, at the end of the day, it’s up to the consumer to decide whether to buy the PPV.
LAST MAYWEATHER SEEN LIVE
This will be the first time in two years I have covered a Floyd Mayweather Jr. fight live. The last time I attended his fight was when he won a 12 round decision over Zab Judah. The highlight of that fight was a brawl that occurred late in the fight after Judah purposely landed a low blow to Mayweather. Roger Mayweather was kicked out of the fight and people in press-row feared Mayweather was going to be disqualified. What I remember most was when NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson ran passed me and left the arena as quickly as possible, missing the last three rounds of the fight. Will there be an unexpected moment tonight?
TWEATCAST IS ON!
Twitternation is taking over the world and boxing is not exception. Visit and follow www.twitter.com/sportnjordan to get live updates from the non-televised bout to the post-fight press conference. It should be an interest night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Will all the seats be filled? What will Mayweather wear to the ring? Will there be fights in stands?
Top photo: Six-Time World Champion Floyd Mayweather (Left) and Five-Time World Champion Juan Manuel Marquez (Right) pose on September 18, 2009 at MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada at the weigh-in for their September 19, 2009 fight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena which will be televised live on HBO Pay-Per-View. Photo by Hogan Photos / Golden Boy.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Jason Aniel.
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