HBO Going Late With Cotto-Foreman To Comply With Sabbath Rules

By Bill King, Senior Writer, SportsBusiness Journal

The 11:15pm ET start time for next Saturday's Miguel Cotto-Yuri Foreman fight at Yankee Stadium could make for a late night for viewers on the east coast, but it also stands to deliver great pictures for HBO. The late start was necessary because Foreman, an Orthodox Jew who is studying to be a rabbi, cannot fight or even travel to the arena until the Sabbath concludes after sunset on that Saturday night. To make the date work, Foreman will remain at his Manhattan hotel until about 9:15pm, when he will be met by a police escort that will lead him to the Bronx. HBO Sports President Ross Greenburg said, "We'll have a helicopter following him and cameras on him as he makes his way to Yankee Stadium. It should be great television."