Kovalev Ward PPV figures, low 160k

I would rather see a guy that actually fights rather than a guy that talks then shows up and throws 8 punches a round like Fury, Haye, Briggs, etc. all do. I don't buy a PPV to hear a guy talk I buy it to see an actual fight.

 

Neither guy is a big draw but the fight was not promoted heavily at all. Neither was interviewed by major sports shows or talk shows, commercials were hardly existent, there were no viral social media promotional materials, there was just 45 minutes of build-up show (most of which didn't have to do with their boxing careers), the press tour wasn't promoted much, and there was no thematic hype. The pound-for-pound aspect should have been played up more: "who will be boxing's new king?" And there were the Rockyesque parallels with Kovalev as the Russian Krusher and Ward the American Olympian. Jay-Z specifically didn't use any of his mainstream superstar status to elevate the fight.

"The promoters behind Ward and Kovalev — Roc Nation and Main Events — should have tried harder to deliver when putting their two most prized fighters against each other. It’s fair to say that neither stable is particularly deep with must-watch talent at the moment.

A fair point should be made about Roc Nation’s lack of promotion behind this fight.

That Jay-Z is the man behind them and yet has failed to bring anything different to the fight game has been a major disappointment since he dipped his toe in the game several years ago.

Where was the high-profile singer doing the national anthem? Did Jay-Z do anything but run a ticket contest through his struggling music streaming business TIDAL to draw attention to the bout?

If you’re Ward or Kovalev, win or lose you have to be disappointed with the turnout and promotion for such a pivotal moment in their respective careers."

http://boxingjunkie.usatoday.com/20...erez-in-unsatisfying-ward-kovalev-co-feature/

The promotion was basically just targeting hardcore fans, who were going to buy the fight anyway.

 

There is literally no way to sell Andre Ward fighting on PPV. It doesn't mean he isn't a good fighter but the majority of people who I know didn't buy the fight. Why? Because it wasn't PPV worthy. It is that simple. This fight was an HBO World Championship Boxing level fight. It should have been on regular HBO and not PPV. The fans spoke. They could have spent millions promoting this fight and it wouldn't have resulted in even 10k more PPV buys.

 

Ward is NOT a draw.

 

D

Don't play dumb! You know damn well people have brought up 3G and his PPV numbers when it comes to a conversation about Ward and his PPV numbers! Again! The opponent makes a big difference in the numbers as well. It takes a very popular fighter to get 500K buys fighting nobodies and no hopers! As I posted before, cost probably has something to do with it too! So what we had with the Ward fight was, 2 unpopular fighters, fighting on a PPV event for almost $70.00 and you guys think it was a flop because of Ward and Ward only! And you have the nerve to question why I call you guys jokes? LOL Very entertaining lot you are! I love the hate you guys have towards Ward, it makes his victory over Kovalev that much better! All the excuses and blame you guy throw around. Add into the mix all the anger...This couldn't be any better if it were scripted! I just have to say to the Kovalev lovers(Ward haters) Thanks for the memories!

 

Bull****. Promoting the fight would have increased buys. It works the same with anything no matter the product. Advertising is the most important element.

 

This is boxing's fault. More often than not, Boxing is a rubbish product. It can be boring, it can lack action, we watch poorly matched fights a lot, a lot of politics getting in the way of a culture of having the best fights.

Boxing does relatively good numbers because promoters are enjoying the deep anchoring they've created with the audience over the course of many decades now and haven't needed to step it up because promotional companies still have an acceptable cash flow, but this is all running dry and numbers are waining further. The talent in boxing has dropped, too.

Boxing to MMA is becoming women's boxing to men's boxing - we'd much rather watch the superior fighters which'll fare better in the real world. MMA however is superior for a street fight, people are realising that more - even their women are deadly because of the nature of MMA. MMA fights because its nature is extremely entertaining. 5 rounds, 5 minutes per round makes for a more gruelling construct, too.

 

Bad times for boxing when the biggest fight in the sport draws 160k with MMA pulling in 1 million for their PPVs

 

ufc pays their fighters peanuts so they stack their cards with way better undercards than boxing ppvs

 

You can't put lipstick on a pig. I mean you can but it won't sell better.

 

Landed dummy , he landed 8 punches p/r. He threw over 300 punches. Its hard to fight a guy who refuses to engage in a fight and turns his back and runs away when punches actually do get exchanged.

You may have forgotten , but they were billing Golovkin vs Lemiuex as this era's Hagler/Hearns.. There you had to guys who came to destroy/fight/brawl pitted against each other.
You don't get a better example today of guys who come to fight than those two.. So why did it flop?
How can the Kovalev fight selling poorly be down to Ward when two action men in an all out action fight flopped as well?

Boxing just isn't a PPV sport anymore , thats why.. You can't fill Floyds and Manny's shoes overnight. They were a once in a generation type phenomenon. It was the same with the void left over by Ali.. Larry Holmes was great boxer and just as good as Ali in many ways but he couldn't compete against the cultural and global impact left behind by Ali.. It was a few decades later before he got his recognition as an all time great.

You can't pin the entire blame on Ward. Its very hard to become a PPV King in his shoes. Its a 3 fighter division and all 3 have limited drawing power.
Mexican and Latino fighters come with a huge fanbase , look how many Floyd fought - Hernadez , Manfredy , Castillio , Corrales , Marquez , Hoya , Canelo ... Foreign guys in the US always get massive support from their home countries and Floyd used to tap into that market walking out dressed as a Mexician and warrior and so on.
The sport also needs that kind of theatrics and showmanship . You need big personalities like McGregor and Bellew because thats what sells. Always has and always will.

 

Neither is a man who is known as the Krusher. Because he Krushes people. Boxing isn't a one man show.

 

I disagree, boxing has some boring matches but the product itself isn't inherently inferior on a regular basis to MMA. 5 minute rounds allow fighters to take breaks a lot and after exchanges often stand there huffing and puffing. Most MMA matches are basically bad boxing matches plus a few kicks and a few takedown attempts.

 

I don't actually think the biggest problem is boxing itself, it's one of the reasons. The biggest problem is what I wrote in the second paragraph.

An MMA fighter is just better and harder to beat than a male boxer, period - thus they're inherently the superior fighter. In that sense only it's superior and with boxing there's such a limited, restricted set of rules but I'm not saying MMA is harder..if that makes sense.

MMA is not so much about being the best at one area, but being able to use every area at the right times - meshing them together. It requires an instinctive, fluid intelligence to be channelled here.
I remember doing a thread on what I believe to be 3 different combat philosophies -
1. Fighting to win
2. Outpoint by fighting
3. Outpoint by not fighting
MMA's construct causes one to fight. It's thus befitting that it's called the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Someone like Mayweather can dominate by not fighting (philosophy 3).
5 minute rounds - you're right, they are left huffing and puffing because it's a brutal, intense sport in such a short period of time. AIBA's are 3 minute rounds, 3 rounds but a lot of them are spent because of the demand for specialisation during greater action in a short period of time.

Edit:
Boxing can have its brilliant fights - it's doing well in the UK. Anthony Joshua is becoming a household name.

 

That's definitely a popular perception but there's something to be said about mastery of one discipline. Boxers have a better shot in MMA than MMA fighters ever would in boxing. (And "the street" is certainly no Octagon.)

I also think all the different areas in MMA kind of randomizes the sport a little bit, which is why these big stars rise and fall so fast. Results aren't as concrete are they are in boxing where the cream rises to hte top.