Boxing fans once again have reason to tune in from 9PM to 11PM EST.
That?s the message being sent in recent pay-per-view telecasts, anyway.
Golden Boy Promotions has attempted to make it their mission going back to this past summer?s rematch between Juan Manuel Marquez and Juan Diaz. It wasn?t the most anticipated main event ? both fighters were coming off of losses ? but it was a sequel to the 2009 Fight of the Year.
Still, the folks at Golden Boy sensed an aura of dissatisfaction and decided to do something about it. The end result was an undercard that at least appeared worthwhile on paper, even if the actual results provided a different answer.
The point is that the effort was made, and the fans responded, with the show ? while nowhere near a blockbuster ? doing well enough to leave its handlers in the black for the evening.
Fast forward to September 18 ? another undesirable pay-per-view headliner, another mad dash to find reasons to give otherwise disgruntled fans a reason to tune in.
Three violent knockouts later, it?s safe to say those who gave in and anted up for the show were given their money?s worth, even when considering that the main event was every bit as bad as everyone predicted would be the case.
On a smaller scale earlier in the week, a card was held on the true bicentennial anniversary commemorating Mexico?s battle for independence. Roy Englebrecht and Promociones del Pueblo offered a low-budget mid-week pay-per-view card, headlined by Jhonny Gonzalez? career resurrecting knockout win over Jackson Asiku.
The card was never expected to rake in millions, but just be available for those curious enough to tune in. Those who were bold enough to purchase were treated to a heck of a card, with nary a dull moment to be found from the opening bell of the evening and a war of a main event to boot.
Missing from the equation, sadly, has been the fact that none of the truly big shows come with a supporting cast worth speaking of or even for which to show up or tune in earlier than moments before the main event begins.
It has become a sad trend in recent years, with the strengthening of weaker pay-per-view headliners only receiving a strong push in the past 12 months or so. For far too long, undercards in general were treated as disposable airspace, means for promoters to satisfy contractual obligations with fighters bitching that they?re not being kept active.
While impressive box office receipts for the past several fights featuring either Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather Jr suggested that fans truly only care about the top bill, the grumblings before and after a given event suggested that more should be offered for the premium $55 price tag that now comes with the sport?s biggest events.
The sport still has a long way to go before fans feel fully rewarded from beginning to end, but progress begins with a single step.
For the first time since he?s become a blockbuster draw on his own, Pacquiao will actually have a supporting cast behind him when he faces Antonio Margarito on November 13. The show will take place at Cowboys Stadium, the very same venue that hosted Pacquiao?s 12-round stinker with Joshua Clottey exactly eight months prior.
The crappy undercard and lethargic main event on that evening left the revamped state of the art arena as the chief supporting actor, a new low for the pay-per-view industry. It?s one thing to pay top dollar for a ticket into the new arena and be a part of the live experience; for fans to be given the guided camera tour in lieu of worthwhile in-ring action was as big a cry for help as the sport has offered in recent times.
At the very least, it appears as if Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum is no longer immune to the criticism levied against a la carte broadcasts flying his promotional banner. His next two pay-per-view shows go beyond the marquee fight in terms of giving fans reasons to turn out early.
The November 13 card will feature the present and the future of Top Rank, Inc. Former middleweight king Kelly Pavlik returns to the ring for the first time since losing his crown to Sergio Martinez earlier this year. His fight is a designed tune-up, but one that should be fun for however long it lasts when he faces local attraction Bryan Vera in a ten-round bout.
Two of the sport?s rising stars will also see action on the card. Whereas past slots have been reserved purely for showcase purposes, Mike Jones and Guillermo Rigondeaux instead appear in what on paper should be the toughest tests of their respective careers.
Jones has recently gained much needed exposure after years of being limited to sporadic appearances on Telefutura, hardly the right market for a smooth African-American boxer-puncher from Philadelphia. Come November, he will appear in front of his biggest audience yet ? on TV and in attendance ? as he faces perennial gatekeeper Jesus Soto Karass.
Rigondeaux? career has been moved along considerably quicker than that of Jones or really any other prospect in the game. With just six pro fight to his name, the Cuban export steps way up in class when he takes on Ricardo Cordoba in a fight with an alphabet title at stake.
Three weeks later, Arum presents his favorite low-rent cash cow, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, who remains at middleweight as he takes on Alfonso Gomez on December 4.
The fight was once rumored to take place two years ago on HBO?s Boxing After Dark series, but actually resulted in Arum giving the network the finger and declaring that he?d move his kids on his own if he didn?t like what networks were offering in light of Chavez Jr. developing as a pay-per-view attraction on the cult level.
While his fight with Gomez is neither long awaited or even must-see TV, the undercard for that evening is shaping up to be the perfect primer.
Top lightweights Humberto Soto and Brandon Rios will see action in separate preliminary slots. The biggest supporting bout of the evening is a 10-round match between pound-for-pound entrant Nonito Donaire and former longtime bantamweight titlist Wladimir Sidirenko.
Between the two shows come at least three step up fights on the respective undercards.
The main events on both cards are what they are ? in-house fights in which the A-side is expected to win and by a considerable margin. But progress begins with a single step, and promoters are finally realizing that there is more to be gained for the future of the sport when giving fans a reason to tune in from the moment the cameras begin rolling.
