Abraham vs. Marquez is gonna cost yank fans 25 bucks!

This item is from Michael Marleys site. It probably means that there'll be no official live stream from the fight: Dan Rafael of ESPN reports today that Arthur Abraham's October 4th bout with the resurgent Raul Marquez in Germany will be televised in the United States on pay-per-view by Integrated Sports. Abraham is not well know in the United States and Marquez's popularity has never been top tier; I guess Integrated Sports is looking to lose money and use the event as a tax write-off. At a price point of $24.95, who aside from about ten to twenty thousand hardcore boxing fans will purchase this fight? Keep in mind, I can assure you that Abraham-Marquez will be streamed live by dozens of clandestine websites for free and made available to download minutes after its completion. Once again boxing big wigs, Leon Margules of Warrior Promotions and Wilferd Sauerland of Sauerland Events, have taken a short sighted approach to marketing the sport in the United States. Whatever the “minimal” fee offered by Showtime, VS, or some other network, the hit in profit would have been worth the damage just to further promote the sport and Abraham. Interestingly enough, many of Sauerland's fight cards in Germany are streamed free of charge on the corresponding television station's website. A sound practice which has never caught on here with American promoters. Abraham is a strong fighter and exciting to watch at times. If he defeats Marquez, and Abraham will be a betting favorite, a bout with Kelly Pavlik is on the immediate horizon. Pavlik vs. Abraham is one of the best fights that could be made in boxing, when considering potential action. Abraham whose sole American television appearance was earlier this summer on Showtime against Edison Miranda, could have gained from the exposure of being seen by fans without a pay per view price tag. Margules', promoter to Marquez, agenda is understandable. The event is in Germany, Sauerland is the lead promoter, and his man is likely to lose. Why not make some pay-per-view dough before cashing out on Marquez. If you have not notice, HBO and other key networks televising the sport in the U.S. are not knocking on Margules' door to feature his stable of fighters. Good move by Margules, bad move by Sauerland, and American fight fans lose again. “Your a broken record Lois,” one reader informed me this morning via e-mail following a column I wrote regarding the marketing of boxing to younger viewers, but hey, if the content of my song ring true, this funky 45 is going to be spinning for a long time.