BoxRec

"How Mayweather-McGregor Delivered Ultimate Gut Punch To HBO"

With the recent announcement that the fight nobody thought had any business of happening will now take place on August 26th, all parties involved can celebrate. The spectacle that is Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor is guaranteed to make a ton of money as it follows in the footsteps of crossover fights such as Ali-Inoki and Toney-Couture. The difference is that social media will push this fight to inexplicable heights over the next ten weeks as we’ll experience some of the finest trash talking combat sports has ever seen.

Everybody wins!

Well, everybody except HBO Boxing.

The announcement dealt a pair of mighty blows to the gut of HBO Boxing. Any buzz surrounding Andre Ward’s rematch with Sergey Kovalev has been drowned out by the noise of Mayweather-McGregor. And, unfortunately, a fight between two of the best pound for pound fighters in the world needs all the push it could possibly get.

More significant than the blow to Ward-Kovalev 2 is the one that is being dealt to Canelo vs. GGG. What is easily the best fight that can be made in boxing is going to have to deal with the residuals fallout from what is now the biggest spectacle in sports, period. Oh yeah, and Mayweather-McGregor happens to be the same night as Miguel Cotto vs. Yoshihiro Kamagei.

It’s not something that is going to destroy HBO Boxing, but it certainly presents a significant mountain to climb. And, who knows, the deal may have been made in direct response to Oscar De La Hoya urging boxing fans to boycott Mayweather-McGregor.

If Oscar wanted to pick a fight, now he has one.

Thoughts?

I don't know which fight is going to make less money: Cotto's or Ward's. Cotto is fighting on the same night as Mayweather, but Hispanics who don't want to pay for Floyd vs. Conor will watch Cotto. The fight tonight with Ward and Kovalev had just the announcement of the fight to deal with, not the actual fight, and it still may make less money than Cotto's fight.

RScarf1 wrote:I don't know which fight is going to make less money: Cotto's or Ward's. Cotto is fighting on the same night as Mayweather, but Hispanics who don't want to pay for Floyd vs. Conor will watch Cotto. The fight tonight with Ward and Kovalev had just the announcement of the fight to deal with, not the actual fight, and it still may make less money than Cotto's fight.

I can't speak for Puerto Ricans or other Latinos since I live 8 miles from the Mexican border, but I really don't expect Mexican/Mex-American fans to buy washed-up Cotto's stay-busy fight on PPV.

Mayweather and McGregor are 2 of the most hated fighters among Mexican fans, so I expect a pretty healthy number of them to plop down $10 at the local bar & grill to see McGregor lose.

Best Coast wrote:

RScarf1 wrote:I don't know which fight is going to make less money: Cotto's or Ward's. Cotto is fighting on the same night as Mayweather, but Hispanics who don't want to pay for Floyd vs. Conor will watch Cotto. The fight tonight with Ward and Kovalev had just the announcement of the fight to deal with, not the actual fight, and it still may make less money than Cotto's fight.

I can't speak for Puerto Ricans or other Latinos since I live 8 miles from the Mexican border, but I really don't expect Mexican/Mex-American fans to buy washed-up Cotto's stay-busy fight on PPV.

Mayweather and McGregor are 2 of the most hated fighters among Mexican fans, so I expect a pretty healthy number of them to plop down $10 at the local bar & grill to see McGregor lose.

Really? Mexicans hate McGregor? I guess because he beat Nate Diaz in the rematch. I guess they hate Mayweather because he beat Canelo, Juan Manuel Marquez, and other Mexican boxers. If Cotto was Mexican though, more of them would watch Cotto.