Contrary to public belief and industry innuendo, Showtime – which kicks off its 2009 ‘Championship Boxing’ campaign this Saturday night at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California with WBA/IBF/WBC super flyweight champion Vic Darchinyan taking on Jorge Arce – doesn’t have one foot outside the boxing business while looking for a trap door out of it.
And though they have flirted with the MMA realm, they are firmly entrenched in the boxing business.
“I can assure you that the commitment is as strong as ever and there hasn’t been any fall off from that internally here,” said Ken Hershman, the Senior VP and GM of Sports and Event Programming for the network, a couple weeks ago. “There’s a very challenging time economically for the country, let alone for premium television, Showtime in particular. We all have to deal in that world and there’s no secret to that. But I can tell you this is a key component of our programming mix and our sports lineup. There’s no fall off in terms of the importance of boxing to Showtime.”
That?s good news for boxing fans, because in an era when more and more networks (such as ESPN and Telefutura) are scaling back – or dropping altogether – their boxing coverage, more platforms are needed in this sport. Hershman referenced the economy, which has affected just about every facet of life today, and when asked if perhaps the current state of things has brought about a market correction or at least some sanity to the money being thrown around in the game, he would answer, “I hope so. I think that anyone who ignores what’s going on in the economy is going to be left on the sideline as we make fights and commit to events through 2009 and beyond. So I think it’s a smart thing to pay attention, read the paper.”
The exorbitant money that was once so readily available has dried up, which means that promoters, managers and fighters, must be more realistic (at least on this network) in their monetary demands.
“I think so,” agreed Hershman. “I think that based on my conversations, everybody is understanding the situation and I just don’t know if it’s trickled out to the fighters and managers yet. But it will.”
Like always, if HBO wants a fight or fighter on its network, it will pry it or him away from Showtime. Such is the case with Chad Dawson, who was developed on the network and last October beat Antonio Tarver convincingly. But as Dawson’s profile grew, his value was such that Showtime is no longer in the Dawson business.
“I can’t say I’m not disappointed,” admitted Hershman, “but at the end of the day, we have to do what’s right for Showtime, and Chad Dawson and his team have to do what they think is right for them and if I look at the light heavyweight division and the number of top contenders and great events that can come out of that division versus some of the others that I’m active in, I think it comes up way short.”
And Showtime wasn’t about to put up over $3 million for Dawson-Tarver II. They had already seen ‘the Love Guru’; no need for a high priced sequel nobody wants. “Well, in respect to that particular fight, we saw it once, I think it was fairly convincing, I didn’t see the need to see it again,” said Hershman diplomatically.
While HBO showcases individual fighters, Showtime has taken a different tact. Their focus seems to be on showcasing certain divisions, ones that are deep and laden with potential matchups that can be made on a consistent basis. Right now, the 115-pound class (which features the likes of Darchinyan, Arce and Fernando Montiel) and 168-pounds (that could center on the likes of Jermain Taylor in late March and Mikkel Kessler, among a deep group of super middleweights) seem to be in Showtime’s plans.
“If you look at these weight classes, there are some that have a lot of depth and a lot of interesting fights and there are others that are just lacking. And so if you want to have some continuity to your programming and a plan, you want to pick those weight divisions that have the most upside and then focus on them,” explained Hershman. “That’s what we’re going to do and that’s what we are doing. I think so far, from what I have on the calendar and what we’re discussing about in the future, it’s going to be one of the strongest years yet.”
On April 7th, Showtime will feature a jr. welterweight unification bout when Kendall Holt and Tim Bradley square off. Holt was supposed to face Ricardo Torres in early December, but instead beat late replacement Demetrius Hopkins for the right to face Bradley. Bradley, by beating Junior Witter for the WBC belt last summer on the network, basically earned his way into the mix. The theme here seems to be fights to make fights.
?Boxing is one of those sports where the best laid plans usually lead to something very different than you set out to achieve. Our goal is the same as it always is, to get the best fights possible but with a little more thought on where things can lead next for selling the fighter on coming here and selling our subscribers on starting to tune in and watch the series of fights. So yes, we’d very much like a plan and we think that we’re executing that way. We have some very, very exciting things on the horizon,” says Hershman.
One focus that Showtime has is to spotlight the younger, fresher talent. For too long, the game has relied on the old guard to be its foundation with no regard for the days ahead.
“We need to develop some of these young kids who have tremendous skill, athleticism and futures and stop relying so much on some of the older names as the easy way to go,” stated Hershman. “Because the sport needs to demonstrate that it’s got some vibrancy and some youth to it. I think if you look at 2009, you have a lot of that already, so it should be a pretty robust year for everybody.”
VAZQUEZ-MARQUEZ IV?
The rivalry between Israel Vazquez and Rafael Marquez has been one of the signatures of Showtime’s boxing franchise the past few years. But will a fourth installment be taking place on the network in the upcoming year?
?I would say that that fight is probably no longer being discussed as something imminent,” said Hershman, whose network has broadcast their first three bouts. “The financial requirements of the fighters were too high for us to justify doing it.”
POLE POSITION
According to a press release put out by Main Events that quotes Will Carafello of the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, Tomasz Adamek’s bout against Jonathan Banks on February 27th is selling at three times the pace that his bout with Steve Cunningham did in the early stages.
The Adamek-Banks bout is the maiden voyage of the new ‘Brick City Boxing Series’ being staged by Main Events at the Prudential Center. Tickets are priced at $253, $103, $78, $53 and $38. They can be purchased at the Prudential Center box office or by calling Ticketmaster at 201-507-8900.
FINAL FLURRIES
Laker fans, let’s all say a prayer for Andrew Bynum and his knee. What a buzzkill; this kid was really coming on….Seriously, Cris Carter didn’t get voted into the Hall-of-Fame again? Bruce Smith and Rod Woodson were no-brainers, though….Seriously, did Marco Antonio Barrera actually fight this weekend?…..RIP to Ingemar Johansson….
