Showtime Sports Exec VP & GM Stephen Espinoza said boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s win against Robert Guerrero on May 4 would "definitely exceed" 1 million PPV buys, according to Dan Rafael of ESPN.com. However, the PPV buys "fall short" of Mayweather's recent bouts. Espinoza on Friday said, "We can't tell how much it will exceed 1 million, though. That's going to be determined by the reporting (from cable systems) that will come in over the next few weeks.” Rafael noted if the fight did 1 million PPV buys, that would be a gross of "at least" $60M. The fight was the "first for Mayweather -- boxing's biggest star and the active pay-per-view king -- under a new deal he signed earlier this year with Showtime/CBS.” The PPV sales for the Guerrero fight “will not approach the 1.5 million Mayweather generated for his fight last May with Miguel Cotto, his last fight before leaving longtime TV home HBO.” Espinoza said that he is “happy with the results of the Mayweather-Guerrero fight, even though he had predicted they would equal the Cotto fight.” Espinoza: "Looking at the numbers, for Floyd to do a million buys, and conceivably more, when it was one of his lesser-known pay-per-view opponents in the last six or seven years, that is a testament to his drawing power” (ESPN.com, 5/10).
PLENTY OF EXPOSURE: In L.A., Lance Pugmire noted the Mayweather-Guerrero fight was “publicized through reality shows that aired on Showtime and CBS, on the numerous CBS radio affiliates and by a Mayweather appearance at the Final Four in April.” Espinoza said that reports “speculating that Showtime fell short of its ‘break-even point’ are ‘absolutely untrue.’” Pugmire wrote perhaps “most importantly for the network, Mayweather emerged victorious and healthy from the bout and intends to fight again Sept. 14 in a possible super-fight” against Canelo Alvarez (LATIMES.com, 5/10). Espinoza said that Showtime Sports was “thrilled with the marketing and promotion efforts from Showtime and from multichannel distributors, as well as from corporate siblings CBS and CBS Radio” (MULTICHANNEL NEWS, 5/13 issue).
