Not much in the way of fights this upcoming week, so I'll dedicate this column to some random thoughts on some pressing boxing issues, and some news and notes. Here goes...
-- The upcoming purse bid for the WBO welterweight title between champion, Terence Crawford, and Shawn Porter is scheduled for this upcoming Thursday (September 2), and it's expected that the main bidders will be Top Rank and PBC (through TGB Promotions).
Many are speculating who will win this bid, and at what number.
Keep this in mind, there is the chance that with this 60-40 split in favor of Crawford that if the bid isn't at least $10 million that one of the sides may not be satisfied with their end of the cut, and walk away from the fight. But also be mindful that whoever wins this bid, will make an offer based on trying to actually turn a profit on this event.
So lets say this pay-per-view is priced at around the standard $80 mark, and does 250,000 buys --- remember, the cable/satellite operators get around half of that revenue -- that's $10 million for the promotion.
Yes, there are other forms of revenue: the site fee/gate, foreign rights, sponsorships and merchandise. But then you also have to factor in the undercard and the marketing costs related to the event.
PBC is already scheduled to do a big fall pay-per-view card featuring Canelo Alvarez and Caleb Plant for the undisputed super middleweight title. While Top Rank and PBC are scheduled to co-promote the trilogy bout between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder on October 9.
Because of what they put up for Alvarez-Plant, PBC may be judicious in what they put forth as an offer for this welterweight contest. While Top Rank is entering it's last bout under it's current deal with Crawford, which has been lucrative for the native of Omaha financially, but unfulfilling in terms of impact of career goals.
His last bout came against the shopworn Kell Brook, where Crawford's side leaked their dissatisfaction at Top Rank's handling of their career. While Arum groused about how much money they lost on his fights, as they paid him a minimum of $3.5 million per bout under their deal.
Photo Credit: Top Rank
You just wonder, is this a high-priced game of 'chicken' taking place where both sides want to put in respectable bids as to not embarrass themselves and their boxers, but not actually win the right to promote this match-up?
First and foremost, boxing is a business. While Crawford-Porter is an interesting fight, it just may not be great at the bottom line.
"We're going to see how the purse bid thing shakes out,'' Arum told SNAC.com on Friday afternoon. "It may very well be where we do a deal with PBC, and do the fight.
The veteran promoter noted that the working date he has in mind is November 20 in Las Vegas for Porter-Crawford.
"We're trying to make sure that fight happens," he stated. "We're in discussions with PBC. We'll see what happens."
THE MONSTER
So what's the latest with unified bantamweight champion, Naoyo Inoue, who is considered among the elite boxers in the world?
He was last seen on June 19, where he dispatched Michael Dasmarinas in three rounds. Will he appear again in 2021?
Photo credit Mikey Williams/Top Rank
Arum explained, "We're working on solving the quarantine in Japan. He wants to fight in Japan in his next fight, and I don't know if it's going to be possible because the opponent has to be in quarantine for 14 days."
So with that, there is the possibility that Top Rank, "bringing him over and doing another fight in the United States," said Arum.
As for the rematch with WBC belt-holder, Nonito Donaire, it looks like that fight will be tabled till 2022.
"That's a major fight in Japan, it's silly to waste in the United States," said Arum.
As for Donaire, his side is currently in negotiations with WBO champion, John Riel Casimero, for a December clash. They were scheduled to meet this summer, but that fight dissolved because of a disagreement over VADA drug testing, and then some personal barbs that were aimed by Casimero and his team at Donaire's wife/manager, Rachel.
Those two issues still need to be resolved before this fight moves forward.
ROMAN EMPIRE
In another buzzkill, the bout between former unified 122 pound champion, Danny Roman, and Ra'eese Aleem, which was to have co-headlined the September 18 Showtime card which features the junior featherweight unification between Brandon Figueroa( WBC) and Stephen Fulton (WBO) has gone to 'bolivian.
"I don't want to over-simplify it, but we weren't able to come to an agreement." explained Alex Camponovo (who by the way, is actually from Bolivia), the general manager and matchmaker for Thompson Boxing that is the lead promoter for Roman.
Photo credit: Carlos Baeza/Thompson Boxing
Bottom line is that they simply weren't offered enough money for a risk of this nature.
Roman, is currently ranked number one by the WBC and second by the WBO. He is in line for a title shot soon, and to face Aleem (who is rated first by the WBA) under these circumstances would've been something that they had to be very well compensated for.
It is a shame, though, Roman and Aleem is a very enticing pairing. Roman is rated second by the Ring Magazine, Aleem comes in at number seven.
ELIMINATING DEVIN
Word I'm getting is that Golden Boy Promotions would still like to have Joseph Diaz and Ryan Garcia meet in the fall. Although, there is some indication that GBP is dangling a possible Garcia fight in what is a cat-and-mouse game with DAZN, as their deal with them is set to expire in December.
But let's say that Diaz-Garcia do clash in their next fight, this would mean that for the second consecutive time a boxer who participated in a WBC eliminator will have bypassed an opportunity to face Devin Haney, who holds their lightweight title.
First it was Garcia who stopped Luke Campbell in early January to win the WBC interim title. Then Diaz who out-pointed Javier Fortuna in July for that same position. There's no denying that Diaz-Garcia is an interesting match-up, and one that is in-house for Golden Boy. But at what point do sanctioning bodies start putting their foot down and make those who participate in elimination bouts actually go onto face their champions?
Why sanction such fights, and take the fees that come along with it? Also, why are the participants so willing to pay them?
Is it for a shot at the title?
Or just the hope that the current champion moves up in weight?
FINAL FLURRIES
WBA/IBF junior featherweight champion, Murodjon Akhamdaliev has covid, meaning that his bout against his mandatory challenger, Ronny Rios, will be backed up again. There were plans to stage this on the September 18 card that DAZN has not formally announced....David Benavidez's bout against Jose Uzcategui, which was originally slated for this past weekend, will now take place (hopefully) on November 13... VADA has announced that both Alvarez and Plant are fully enrolled in their drug testing program leading into their fight, and will be tested for a full 10 weeks....Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports tweeted that the Manny Pacquiao-Yordenis Ugas event did around 250,000 buys. So you have to wonder, what impact will that make on those who are contemplating a bid on the Crawford-Porter bout?.....I can be reached at k9kim@yahoo.com....
