Good read if you sorely miss HBO Boxing (why you should hate Peter Nelson's guts)

In case you're feeling nostalgic for the good ol' days and need a scapegoat:

https://www.badlefthook.com/2018/10...er-nelson-deserve-for-hbo-being-out-of-boxing

And the bittersweet kicker is? He was ousted just a couple of years after killing the beloved institution off. (and make no mistake, he's even more responsible for the death of HBO Boxing than Vince Russo was for WCW's)

Had it only happened a little sooner and they brought in someone more like Hershman, maybe it could have been revived and restored to its past glory and still be competitive with DAZN, ESPN and PBC if not the alpha of the pack once more.

Would love to rattle a few combos off that big dumb Robbie Rotten looking face, while Jim Lampley sat on a chair a few feet away with a poncho to keep the blood off his suit (like the front row at a Gallagher show when the watermelon gets sledgehammered) calling the action.

 

"HBO isn't a sports network"

...okay, except it WAS for a long time, with an incredibly devout fan base, you cretin. And so what if your research metrics showed that boxing didn't "move the subscriber" needle? I don't think they realized how many subs got canceled because of this move. You don't want to alienate any part (even a small one) of your core demographic in an age where there is so much saturation of competitors and so many folks cable-cutting or having a ton of streaming apps to choose from.

 

This forum was convinced that HBO was ruining boxing, hated the broadcast team and generally had nothing nice to say about HBO's place in the sport. Careful what you wish for. ...

Today's big fights typically don't feel as big without them, because the production values aren't the same, the on-air talent isn't the same, and so on. The matchups became problematic during the end, of course, and I do wonder if there was any way for HBO to remain neutral. But I wish they had tried a little harder.

And yes, Peter Nelson is extremely punchable!

 

I miss the dramatic strings with the aerial view of the MGM Grand. That signaled to me that fight night was upon us.

 

They often warranted criticism, particularly under Nelson's tenure, but I for one never wished them gone and never considered them any less than boxing's standard bearer and remained hopeful for a course-correction until the bitter end. I was heartbroken to see it happen.

 

I think at some point HBO will re-enter the Boxing game again. And yes HBO’s early foundation in the late 70’s and early 80’s was built on sports they covered live Boxing and Tennis and had weekly NFL programming during the Season. Oh, they also had a little show called Real Sports that was pretty damn good.

 

Ok Jim....

 

I miss big fights on HBO. No body put on a broadcast as good as them.

 

Jamie Kellner switched the WCW life support off


Good read, thanks for this

 

HBO boxing to me was an institution. They basically define Middle School and High School for me. 03-10 HBO Boxing was everything to me personally. When they burned it all down and pulled the plug a part of me was destroyed with it. That's how much I loved HBO boxing.

You are right that they may not be wise to alienate such a passionate customer base. Thousands if not millions subscribed to their channel for the sole purpose of watching HBO Boxing. We could debate the economic model for eternity. But that wont bring me back my HBO boxing.

And I too would definitely like to punch the guy who has the largest degree of responsibility for destroying HBO Boxing.

 

Peter Nelson had nothing to do with the decision, it was his corporate bosses at HBO who decided to cancel boxing. In fact, he wanted it to continue.

Richard Plepler and other top people were responsible for the decision at the time.

 

They will come back eventually, once an american star comes theyll come back and try to seduce him lol

 

Don't forget their other sports themed programming like 1st & Ten, Arliss, Race for the Pennant, Bob Costas (had 2 talk shows on HBO), Hard Knocks, The Shop, and Ballers (although i'd rather forget that one).

 

Nothing today comes close to the professionalism HBO had. Even if the card was not very good (which was often), you still felt like you were watching something significant. They brought a touch of class and dignity to boxing. They had standards. I don't like the direction boxing is going today, perhaps the well is finally drying up for real this time.

 

The Bernard Hopkins Oscar De La Hoya fight is scheduled for 12 rounds under the unified rules of the association of boxing commissions.

There is.. NO three knockdown rule. Only the referee can stop the fight. In the case of a cut caused by an accidental headbutt we go to the scorecards after four rounds have been completed. And you CANNOT be saved by the bell in ANY round.. including, the 12th and final round... Jim