What happens in Vegas, isn?t staying in Vegas any longer. And what?s happening to MGM Mirage, which owns in whole or in part 20 casinos and is Nevada?s largest employer, is almost all bad news.
The one-time boxing mecca may go a long time before it returns to hosting numerous big-time boxing matches and paying generous site fees to boxing promoter.
If you think the trend to live, local boxing is a short term one, think again.
The Paul Williams-Winky Wright fight April 11 at Mandalay Bay is a total dud in terms of excitement and ticket sales. While Wright and Williams are highly skilled, neither one can attract flies to the city dump.
This fight should be held on a barge on the East River.
Las Vegas will host a sort of fistic Super Bowl May 2 with the Ricky Hatton-Manny Pacquiao fight at the MGM Grand but don?t look for any other blockbuster bouts to wind up in the city as the economy continues to stumble.
The financial woes of MGM Mirage, which owns both of two top boxing host sites, paint a frightening picture. MGM Grand officials are in talks with lenders now about getting possible waivers on loans and/or amending credit terms.
The crushing debt load of MGM Grand is about $14 billion. On Friday, the stock hit a 52-week low of $1.81 as opposed to a 52-week high of $64.85.
For those of you snoring at home, the stock is at least 96 percent in one year.
Can you say Chapter 11 bankruptcy? Deutsche Bank gaming analyst told investors in New York that the key word around MGM is sell, baby, sell.
Lerner said MGM Mirage may have to unload casinos, as it recently did in peddling Treasure Island for $775 million, or sell other properties. One such possible sale ?item? is its $9.1 billion City Center project which seemed like a good idea back in a better economic climate.
“They could sell a hotel tower or a residential hotel tower to a hotelier,” Lerner said, adding the company has enough liquidity to resolve its 2009 and 2010 debt maturities, which total about $2.1 billion.
“The company needs to quell concerns that they are going out of business,” he said.
If you?re going to Hatton-Pacquiao, you may want to splurge a little. Chances are it could be your last boxing visit to LV in a long while.
Las Vegas as the big fight destination is a thing of the past unless and until the economy rebounds.
