Media Notes

Mayweather Jr.-Marquez Fight To Air On HBO PPV Opposite UFC 103 PPV Event

The ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER's Carlos Arias reports the September 19 UFC 103 PPV card will go "toe-to-toe" with the Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Juan Manuel Marquez fight on HBO PPV, and a UFC source said that the UFC will "air a two-hour telecast of the UFC 103 undercard commercial free on Spike TV as a lead in" for the PPV fights. It "remains to be seen how well either event will do with two major PPV events on the same night" (OCREGISTER.com, 8/20).

CLEARER FUTURE? In Houston, David Barron cites Texans officials as saying that the team's preseason games are "not being carried in HD" on KTRK-ABC due to "format and transmission issues between [KTRK] and the other nine stations on the team's network." Texans VP/Communications Tony Wyllie: "We will try to do HD (for exhibition games) next season. We are exploring ways to get it done, and we will get it done" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 8/21).

QUITE A PAIR: In San Antonio, Chuck Blount wrote ESPN and the World Series of Poker (WSOP) "have proven to be a terrific marriage." The net signed an extension through '18 to continue airing WSOP coverage, and poker has a "lot to thank" ESPN for. The relationship has "turned scores of players over the years into household names and has allowed them the platform to make a lot of money via endorsements, book deals and speaking engagements" (SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS, 8/20).

ALONG FOR THE RIDE: In N.Y., David Hinckley reviews Animal Planet's "Jockeys," which launches its second season Friday. The show "follows eight riders, two new this season, at the Santa Anita racetrack in California," and it "often feels more like a documentary than a 'reality' show." The show "uses extensive clips from races to illustrate points about the jockeys and horses," and it "stresses the bond that jockeys and trainers develop with their horses." What the show "doesn't touch is the state of Thoroughbred racing in general." Hinckley awards the series five stars (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 8/21).