By Jake Donovan
As has been the case for several Top Rank-promoted pay-per-view events through the years, Tecate Beer continues to throw its support behind the sport and for the betterment of the buying public.
Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum revealed during Thursday’s press conference in New York City that the Mexican beer company is going “all in with its boxing support” in regards to the April 12 HBO PPV-televised rematch between Timothy Bradley and Manny Pacquiao. The welterweight title fight takes place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, which hosted their first fight in June ’12, won by Bradley via controversial split decision.
“The sponsor for this fight, as is the case for all of our major fights, is Tecate,” Arum stated during the press conference at New World Stages in New York City’s theatre district. “It is as perfect a sponsor for a big pay-per-view event. What better way to entertain than with a big case of Tecate beer. When you figure out the number of people we're getting in each house for pay-per-view, the cost is cheaper than it is for a ticket to go to the movies.”
“Because Tecate is our sponsor, it will cost even less. They will have a rebate program. They will have special events where you can join the Tecate family and get the event for nothing.”
Every little bit will help, considering the recent trend for boxing pay-per-view events. It’s a rare occurrence for any PPV show distributed by HBO or Showtime to come in under $50, a figure that has long ago ceased to accompany any given event featuring Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather, the two biggest draws in the sport.
The price went up for any given pay-per-view event featuring Pacquiao dating back to his Dec. ’08 stoppage win of box office blockbuster Oscar de la Hoya. That event carried a price tag of $54.95 (plus $10 more for those who purchase in HD), as was the case for his next several events.
Pacquiao’s last two a la carte appearances – his fourth fight with Juan Manuel Marquez in Dec. ’12 and last November’s near shutout of Brandon Rios – were both offered at the sport’s current premium rate of $59.95. The same amount has been tagged for any given event featuring Mayweather, including last September’s win over Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, which broke his own record for the highest grossing pay-per-view event in boxing history.
Neither a suggested retail price nor a firm rebate amount has yet been announced for this event. The first fight between Bradley and Pacquiao featured a massive $40 rebate with the purchase of a Tecate product (12-pack, 18-pack or 24-pack) and the pay-per-view event itself, which was Pacquiao’s last at the $54.95 buy rate.
Details of the Tecate rebate – which figures to be substantial - will be revealed on its Facebook page in the next few weeks.
Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of Boxingscene.com, as well as a member of Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and the Boxing Writers Association of America. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
