Comments Thread For: Vergil Ortiz Jr. poised to benefit from Canelo Alvarez-Turki Alalshikh beef

[MulaKO]

I think "his excellency" will have a short shelf life in boxing, the entire seat of his power is predicated upon blowing huge sums of money, history has shown that is not sustainable in any form of business or governance. On top of that, he already believes he is bigger than the sport, which is going to piss off a proud traditionalist like Canelo. He will make big fights, no doubt about that, but I give it two years before this whole circus collapses on itself.

As long as I get to see good boxing unlike a Canelo vs Berlanga fight , then I say long live the King

[MulaKO]

Crawford vs. Madrimov: A $10 Million Fiasco for Riyadh Season
By Robbie Bannatyne - 08/07/2024
Boxing News 24

Last weekend, Terence Crawford vs. Israil Madrimov reportedly lost $10 million in a Riyadh Season event at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. His Excellency Turki Alalshikh put on the event staged in Southern California rather than Las Vegas.

A Main Event That Poisoned the Well

Placing Crawford-Madrimov in the main event in SoCal was a cup of poison, and fans didn’t want to drink.

Losing $10M+ might not be a big deal for Turki if money is no object to the Saudis, but they can’t be pleased if they are concerned about making a profit. Journalist Kevin Iole says tickets were given away for the event to fill the BMO Stadium, yet it wasn’t full. Indeed, you could see many empty seats, even during the Crawford-Madrimov main event.

In hindsight, Turki’s decision to match Crawford against the little-known Madrimov was bad for a main-event fight. Fans in the U.S. aren’t familiar with the former WBA junior middleweight champion Madrimov, who came into the fight with just 11 pro fights and was a complete unknown.

Empty Seats Despite Giveaways

“The Crawford-Madrimov card in Los Angeles last week, the first Riyadh Season event put on by the Saudis in the U.S., likely lost more than $10 million, several sources told KevinIole.com. The pay-per-view sales were negligible,” said Iole on his site about last Saturday’s Riyadh Season event headlined by Crawford vs. Madrimov at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. “Scores of tickets — thousands of them — were given away for the Crawford-Madrimov show, and still the stands weren’t full. Tickets were way overpriced and even when they were cut dramatically, it’s not like there was a massive demand.

If these numbers are accurate, Turki Alalshikh must focus on getting superstar Canelo Alvarez for Crawford’s next fight in 2025. Canelo-Crawford would sell, and it’s big enough to fill a stadium on the West Coast, should Turki want to stage it there.

Reasons for Crawford-Madrimov event failure

• Crawford’s inactivity: He hadn’t fought in 13 months and had competed annually since 2020.
• Lack of star appeal: He was non-smiling, lacking in charisma, and came across as having a chip on his shoulder going into the fight.
• Israil Madimov was not well known to Americans.
• Staging fight in the wrong location
• Poor promotion
• Undercard problem: Although the undercard was excellent, there wasn’t a fight that was big enough on its own merit to help the poor main event. Crawford vs. Madrimov was the main event, and it was pure poison.

The former Top Rank-promoted Crawford fought the wrong opponent because he’s not a big enough name to lure fans to pay to watch him fight an obscure newbie world champion. Madrimov had captured his WBA 154-lb title last December, and he’d not been around long enough for anyone in the States to know him.

Canelo: The Crawford Antidote?

Crawford, 36, isn’t a big draw and needs a popular fighter like Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis or Canelo Alvarez to headline a fight card on the West Coast. Turki needed a big name to help Crawford last weekend because he’s not a ticket or PPV seller and never has been.
NEWS: Crawford and Hearn Spar on Social Media Over Madrimov Fight
Although Crawford has a lot of technical ability and talent, he’s not popular with casual fans, lacks charisma, and his fights are generally not entertaining. To sell, Crawford needs guys that fans are eager to see. If Turki can’t get them big names for Crawford to fight, he needs to put him in small venues, preferably in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska.

Aside from them, Crawford lacks the popularity to headline in a stadium on the West Coast. He’s fine in a small venue, but you can’t put him in a stadium and expect it to fill, even with a great undercard.

https://www.************.com/2024/08...riyadh-season/

The show was sold out ( I can attest because went looking for tickets )
Just that fugh Eminem costed 5 million so nah
Plus what other show this year did you have two ( could of been more if not for corrupted judges ) upsets of that grandeur

[Bronx2245]

The show was sold out ( I can attest because went looking for tickets )
Just that fugh Eminem costed 5 million so nah
Plus what other show this year did you have two ( could of been more if not for corrupted judges ) upsets of that grandeur

If you gift a bunch of tickets, then people will have problems getting tickets. I think I’ll roll with Kevin Iole on this one. He’s been around for quite some time now.

[MulaKO]

If you gift a bunch of tickets, then people will have problems getting tickets. I think I’ll roll with Kevin Iole on this one. He’s been around for quite some time now.

He doesn’t reveal any source so my thinking is it’s bullchit

[Bronx2245]

He doesn’t reveal any source so my thinking is it’s bullchit

If it wasn’t Iole, I would agree.

[BrankoB]

Crawford’s power doesn’t look like it’s carried fully to 154.
Benvidez power hasn’t carried to 175.
Canelo’s power didn’t carry to 175.
Morrell’s power didn’t carry to 175.

Everyone think because Pac breezed through 7/8 divisions blasting people out that everyone can do it. Lots suspected PED abuse.

Until we see how Ortiz’s power carries against a live dog at 154 we shouldn’t take anything for granted. I expect him to struggle more than he anticipates just like Crawford did. Happy to be surprised if he doesn’t.

I think there is some truth to this. I must say I was thinking the same thing when watching Canelo, Benavidez, Morrell and Crawford. None of them could really hurt their opponents at a higher weight (I am discounting shot Kovalev) so it will be interesting to see what happens to Ortiz. Also for all his promise, he has never really stepped up to fight a real contender or a champion in his prime. This will be his first real test.

[BrankoB]

If you gift a bunch of tickets, then people will have problems getting tickets. I think I’ll roll with Kevin Iole on this one. He’s been around for quite some time now.

I am not sure about this article. Sounds like speculation, not like factual knowledge. Also sounds like an article was written by someone with an axe to grind ( a bit of a hater if you ask me). One thing I have learned about life is that we never really understand finances in somebody else's house. In this case very few people would understand the real numbers behind the event.

[MulaKO]

If it wasn’t Iole, I would agree.

He got called out on his site and still hasn’t shown any source
Anywya like
i said just the rap show was
5 million in itself
No biggie for Turki

[CPNUTKnockoutFreshMart]

“Beef”. See what you did there

Hahahaha....I was thinking the same thing. Well played !

[A.B Counterhooks]

I think there is some truth to this. I must say I was thinking the same thing when watching Canelo, Benavidez, Morrell and Crawford. None of them could really hurt their opponents at a higher weight (I am discounting shot Kovalev) so it will be interesting to see what happens to Ortiz. Also for all his promise, he has never really stepped up to fight a real contender or a champion in his prime. This will be his first real test.

Shot Kovalov that was coming from defending his championship belt against a fresher ,younger undefeated top ranked contender whom ended up knocking out with a jab. Not to mention krusher was actually beating canelo on the cards right before that 2 piece combo finish in the 11th round.

Safe to say the ginger had way better debut at 175 than both Benny and Morrell(actually fought a champion). Not even gonna include Bud in there as he looked just decently 'alright' against an unknown dude with just 10 fights at his 154 debut.