In light of pound for pound king Floyd Mayweather's new six fight 30 month deal with Showtime, the question has to be raised, what might happen to HBO? The network has been the undisputed number one boxing channel for a long time however the past few years has seen Showtime nipping at it's heels. Typically HBO works with boxers who fight for Top Rank promitional company, while Showtime has most of Golden Boy Promotion's boxers. If HBO wants to remain at the top of the game they will need to add for boxers from the Golden Boy lineup to their bouts.
HBO must have thought they had nothing to worry about considering that both Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao fought almost exclusively on their station. Even though Mayweather works with Golden Boy on a fight to fight basis, he has remained loyal to HBO. But now with Mayweather jumping ship and Pacquiao out for the forseeable future, HBO only has one major star left to bank on as well as 2012's fighter of the year. Those men are Adrien Broner and Nonito Donaire. Donaire isn't a huge draw yet, probably due to the fact that he fights at junior featherweight, which doesn't attract many casual fans. HBO's ace in the hole is Broner. He puts up massive numbers in the ratings fighting, for lack of a better word, bums. If he continues on his current pace he will be a major PPV draw in the near future. But HBO still has to be worried that other fighters might also switch aliances and head over to Showtime.
For some big time boxing fans that is not really a big deal. For others is will be a hard pill to swallow. HBO not only puts on good fights, but very high quality boxing programming. The most notable being their hit series 24/7 which followed two fighters for the four weeks leading up to a major PPV fight. This series would not have existed if not for Mayweather, and obviously Pacquiao helped, and will continue to help if he decides to stay with HBO. The 24/7 series gave boxing fans an amazing insight into what boxers go through during training, insight they would otherwise not be able to witness. So fans of the show will need to cross their fingers and hope other fighters start becoming major PPV stars so the series can continue. Showtime does have a similar program called All Access but it is usually only one episode in contrast to 24/7's four episodes. But not being able to watch 24/7 isn't the only downfall of fighters moving to Showtime, it is also about the commentating team.
The commentators for HBO PPV events include Jim Lampley, Max Kellerman, and Roy Jones Jr. They also have Harold Lederman as an unofficial judge. On the other hand Showtime PPV uses the team of Gus Johnson, Al Bernstein, Antonio Tarver, and sometimes for post-fight interview; Jim Gray. While both networks have solid teams, HBO's is far superior. Their voices are more iconic, their insights much more knowledgeable, and their post-fight question more poignant. After a fight if boxing fans have to choose between Gray and Kellerman to ask the fighter a tough question and make him answer it, 99.9% would choose Kellerman. Gray always lobs softball questions and doesn't press for an answer if the athlete tries to avoid the question. If you need proof of that just go back and watch "The Decision" with LeBron James.
Now HBO has been in the boxing game for a long time, so losing Mayweather should not prove to be a fatal blow. But it does start opening the door to the possibility that Showtime could someday soon overtake them as the top boxing network. For some this is no big deal, but for the fans who not only enjoy the fights, but the entire televised production it will feel like a low blow.
HBO must have thought they had nothing to worry about considering that both Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao fought almost exclusively on their station. Even though Mayweather works with Golden Boy on a fight to fight basis, he has remained loyal to HBO. But now with Mayweather jumping ship and Pacquiao out for the forseeable future, HBO only has one major star left to bank on as well as 2012's fighter of the year. Those men are Adrien Broner and Nonito Donaire. Donaire isn't a huge draw yet, probably due to the fact that he fights at junior featherweight, which doesn't attract many casual fans. HBO's ace in the hole is Broner. He puts up massive numbers in the ratings fighting, for lack of a better word, bums. If he continues on his current pace he will be a major PPV draw in the near future. But HBO still has to be worried that other fighters might also switch aliances and head over to Showtime.
For some big time boxing fans that is not really a big deal. For others is will be a hard pill to swallow. HBO not only puts on good fights, but very high quality boxing programming. The most notable being their hit series 24/7 which followed two fighters for the four weeks leading up to a major PPV fight. This series would not have existed if not for Mayweather, and obviously Pacquiao helped, and will continue to help if he decides to stay with HBO. The 24/7 series gave boxing fans an amazing insight into what boxers go through during training, insight they would otherwise not be able to witness. So fans of the show will need to cross their fingers and hope other fighters start becoming major PPV stars so the series can continue. Showtime does have a similar program called All Access but it is usually only one episode in contrast to 24/7's four episodes. But not being able to watch 24/7 isn't the only downfall of fighters moving to Showtime, it is also about the commentating team.
The commentators for HBO PPV events include Jim Lampley, Max Kellerman, and Roy Jones Jr. They also have Harold Lederman as an unofficial judge. On the other hand Showtime PPV uses the team of Gus Johnson, Al Bernstein, Antonio Tarver, and sometimes for post-fight interview; Jim Gray. While both networks have solid teams, HBO's is far superior. Their voices are more iconic, their insights much more knowledgeable, and their post-fight question more poignant. After a fight if boxing fans have to choose between Gray and Kellerman to ask the fighter a tough question and make him answer it, 99.9% would choose Kellerman. Gray always lobs softball questions and doesn't press for an answer if the athlete tries to avoid the question. If you need proof of that just go back and watch "The Decision" with LeBron James.
Now HBO has been in the boxing game for a long time, so losing Mayweather should not prove to be a fatal blow. But it does start opening the door to the possibility that Showtime could someday soon overtake them as the top boxing network. For some this is no big deal, but for the fans who not only enjoy the fights, but the entire televised production it will feel like a low blow.
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