DALLAS, TEXAS – Expect more major fight cards at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
The next fight could be as early as the month of June. I guess you could say, success has a way of bringing promoters back and usually sooner than later.
Official numbers may come out as early as today but it appears over 700,000 pay per view buys is the neighborhood we are talking about at $50 a piece for the recent Manny Pacquiao 12 – round unanimous decision over Joshua Clottey in front of 51,000 fans at the inaugural fight card at Cowboys Stadium in nearby Arlington, Texas.
“It was a smashing success,” said event management/marketing specialist, Lester Bedford, of nearby Colleyville, Texas. “Everyone was ecstatic with the result. It was the best case scenario for all — including Manny, Top Rank, The Cowboys and HBO,” added Bedford, who worked closely with the Cowboys and Top Rank on the event.
Bedford said he is convinced Cowboys Stadium itself generated an additional 200,000-300,000 pay per view buys to reach the 700,000 and if in Las Vegas this fight would realistically done 400,000 buys or less.
“The curiosity factor about the stadium was huge,” he noted. “In addition, the media interest in this fight was big and a lot of that was based on the association with the Dallas Cowboys, their new Stadium and Jerry Jones. It just elevated the event way beyond what it would have been in another venue.
“This is a rare case where the venue was one of the attractions and mattered. In effect, you had an A fighter (Pacquiao) taking on a B fighter (Clottey), but the atmosphere and interest around the fight was as if two superstars were fighting each other.”
A proposed card in June may involve Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. vs. Irish John Duddy. Antonio Margarito and Jorge Arce are rumored to being considered on the card, in separate fights. Margarito will have to get his license back first since a suspension last year held him out of the show Saturday night but he was there to support it. Duddy won a 10 – round decision on the undercard.
I don’t know that any other promoter ever even contacted Cowboys owner Jerry Jones but Arum now has a big advantage because he was first, had a great success, and he and Jones hit it off.
“Arum is 78 and Jones is 67, said Bedford. “They come from the same school of thought and have a mutual respect for each other. Jerry is easy to make a deal with if you have something he wants. I don’t mean he’s a sucker. But if he’s interested and the terms are fair, there’s a good chance you will have a deal, without a lot of BS to get there.
“And I can say that he appreciates the professionalism and respect Bob Arum showed to him and his staff. Most importantly, Bob stepped up and made a deal that worked for both parties. This wasn’t a situation where the promoter (Arum) was trying to sucker another promoter (Jones) into a bad deal for his own benefit. They entered into a partnership and treated each other that way.”
Fans nationally that bought the PPV referred frequently to a very weak undercard.
“No question, the undercard was weak. If either Chavez, Jr. and or Margarito were available to fight it definitely would have helped, especially in the Texas region. Very simply, they are “A” fighters from Mexico, but they weren’t available. Really, if you look at it, who else could they have put in there that would have made a difference? Either way, this was about Manny Pacquiao, the greatest fighter in the world, fighting in Cowboys Stadium, the greatest stadium in the world. The numbers won’t lie — 51,000 at the gate and over 700,000 pay-per-view customers.”
Few fight night problems:
“The truth is, everything went very smooth for a first time event. The only problem I saw, and it was minor, was — the floor was a little crowded. Next time, remove a couple of rows to create a little more aisle space and room around the ring and the problem is solved. I’d say that’s a good night when that was the only visible problem.”
On a June fight:
“I really believe the Cowboys would prefer to get in another fight before football season. It just makes sense from a media coverage standpoint, plus all the effort the Cowboys have to put into a football season once it starts. If it’s Chavez, Jr. vs. Duddy with Margarito and Arce, it would certainly be a different pricing structure, probably considerably less at the top of the pricing.”
“The thing is, you can only put major shows in Cowboys Stadium. Chavez, Jr. wouldn’t work by himself at this point in his career. He’s no Pacquiao. But he is a great name and with a good supporting cast around him, it makes a lot of sense in the new stadium. Texas has a lot of support for fighters from Mexico and this could be an exciting fight night for those fans. And I don’t have to tell anyone, there’s a boatload of boxing fans in this state. If anyone wants to debate that, I’d be happy to show them the numbers that no other state can compare to.”
