De La Hoya-Pacquiao Match Faces Stiff Test In Current Economy
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Writer Feels De La Hoya (l) Continues To Prove
He Is One Fighter Who Consistently Sells Tix |
Oscar De La Hoya and Manny Pacquiao will fight each other Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and while De La Hoya "has proven he is the one fighter who can consistently sell tickets," some fans may "decide to take a pass this time around," according to Tim Dahlberg of the AP. Ringside seats are priced at $1,500 and the PPV is selling for $54.95 despite the fact that boxing can be a "tough sell even in the best of times." There are "seats available at the MGM hotel arena that was declared a sellout two hours after tickets went on sale in September," and ringside tickets "usually available only to high rollers and top celebrities can be bought online from the hotel in a package that includes two tickets, two nights lodging and VIP entry to the post-fight party" for $3,399. That does not happen "when times are good and tickets and rooms are in short supply." Despite the harsh economic climate, this fight "should put up decent numbers" (AP, 12/2). But in Newark, Jerry Izenberg writes as "good as this fight could be, Vegas knows that it is not going to be the box office cash cow it was sold as" (Newark STAR-LEDGER, 12/5).
WORTH THE PRICE? In Las Vegas, Steve Carp noted the announcement that tickets to Saturday's fight "still could be had was echoed" Wednesday, and Top Rank Chair Bob Arum and Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer, who are co-promoting the fight, "had to be cringing when they heard the announcement." But both "insist the arena will be full come Saturday." Schaefer said that the fight already has produced a live gate of more than $15M. Some industry sources "think the fight won't reach 1 million" PPV buys, yet Schaefer said that he believes "as many as 1.5 million buys is possible" (LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL, 12/4). In L.A., Lance Pugmire wrote the promoters "now will be satisfied to reach 1.5 million" PPV buys, even though that is "more than 750,000 less" than last year's De La Hoya-Floyd Mayweather fight (L.A. TIMES, 12/4). Arum: "Right now, they're showing more early buys at this stage than De La Hoya-Mayweather was showing at the same stage." Arum added in a "lot of ways this economy is actually helping the [PPV] sales for this fight." Arum: "A [PPV] fight, when you have three or four other couples watching it with you, is inexpensive entertainment for a big, major event. That's why we're getting so many early orders now" (LAS VEGAS SUN, 12/4). Meanwhile, USA TODAY's J. Michael Falgoust reported PPV buys for both the October 18 Bernard Hopkins-Kelly Pavlik and November 8 Roy Jones Jr.-Joe Calzaghe bouts "failed to reach 250,000" (USA TODAY, 12/4).
RISE OF MMA: In L.A., Baxter & Pugmire note although MMA is "growing fast, the money generated by big boxing matches still dwarfs" MMA. De La Hoya-Pacquiao "will generate $17.5[M] in live-gate revenue in Las Vegas, plus an estimated 1.5 million [PPV] buys worth more than" $80M. The "high-water mark" for MMA was the Chuck Liddell-Tito Ortiz bout in December '06, with Las Vegas gate receipts of $5.4M and an "estimated 1.05 million [PPV] buys worth about" $42M. Given the "demographic differences between the two sports' fan bases, major boxing matches draw older, more established patrons who stay at the major hotels and spend more freely, boosting gaming revenue by as much as 50% on the weekend of the fight." MMA events "draw a younger, more frugal crowd that has a much smaller impact on the local economy." MGM Grand/Mirage Race & Sports Book Dir Jay Rood: "The MMA fan may come to the property only for the fights, a few beers and a meal at one of the restaurants. The difference in crowds is a natural thing. Boxing is older, more established with more disposable income. As MMA grows the sport, they'll grow that income too" (L.A. TIMES, 12/5).
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Writer Says Saturday's Fight Is A "Good Gauge,"
"Honest-To-Goodness Megafight" |
WHAT LIES AHEAD: In L.A., Bill Dwyre wrote we are "several years from knowing how the sport will weather the immediate future against the competitive onslaught" of MMA. De La Hoya-Pacquiao "will be a good gauge," and it is an "honest-to-goodness megafight, which means we can expect the buildup noise to be worth the drain on our eardrums." If PPV purchases exceed 1.5 million, in an economy where the sale of 1.5 million of anything is "remarkable," then boxing "will have a good measuring stick" (L.A. TIMES, 12/2). Meanwhile, the L.A. TIMES' Dwyre writes the future of boxing includes bringing it back "onto network television rather than relying on cable and [PPV] to grow the audience." Arum and Top Rank's Fernando Beltran "gave the fight broadcast signal free to Mexican Azteca television" for a January '07 card featuring Pavlik and Mexican fighter Jorge Arce, and the ratings "turned out to be surprisingly good." Networks "long ago stopped paying rights fees" for boxing matches, but they are "open to having boxing purchase that time." Arum "thinks that is do-able, by marketing the package to sponsors to cover costs," as he sees that process "as a way to get boxing in front of millions of additional people" (L.A. TIMES, 12/5).
THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOXING RING: YAHOO SPORTS' Kevin Iole reported promoters for De La Hoya-Pacquiao have "implemented a new marketing campaign that could revolutionize how boxing is marketed." HBO PPV created an application on Facebook called "Dream Match" that "allowed friends to 'fight' each other and register to win tickets for" Saturday's fight. TV personality Mario Lopez did 10 short video interviews with De La Hoya and Pacquiao "which are hosted on an HBO channel on YouTube.com." There also are fight displays at various retail outlets, including Terrible Herbst convenience stores and The Home Depot locations. Tecate Beer and Coca-Cola, via its Full Throttle energy drink, "put displays in stores as well and offered rebates that essentially will allow a fan to see" the PPV broadcast for free. The "net affect of the new approach has been to substantially heighten awareness of the bout, which figures to lead directly to more sales" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 12/3). MEDIA WEEK's Anthony Crupi reported HBO is "hedging its bets, joining forces" with Tecate and Coca-Cola. Subscribers who "purchase a 12-pack of Tecate in one of 4,500 participating retail outlets are eligible for the rebate." Tecate Brand Dir Carlos Boughton: "This fight creates a great opportunity for us to reinforce our prominence within the sport" (MEDIAWEEK.com, 12/1). Boughton added that Tecate is "spending as much as 25% more than its usual boxing-based marketing budget to promote the bout." AD AGE's Andrew Hampp wrote sponsors Tecate, Coca-Cola, Southwest Airlines, DeWalt Tools and Cazadores Tequila will "face the unique challenge of helping HBO break [PPV] records in a tight economy while still convincing viewers of their own brand's value" (ADAGE.com, 12/4).
MOSLEY-MARGARITO BOUT MOVED: The L.A. TIMES' Pugmire reports officials for the January 24 Shane Mosley-Antonio Margarito bout indicated that the fight "has been moved from Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas to Staples Center." The move comes "just days after Mosley's statements to the grand jury that investigated [BALCO] were released." Nevada State Athletic Commission Exec Keith Kizer said that the commission was "likely to confront Mosley about the revelations because he had previously told Nevada officials that he didn't believe he had taken anything" that was on WADA's banned list (L.A. TIMES, 12/5).
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