Are You Ordering Mayweather vs Guerrero?

[Jack Napier]

no point to ordering PPV's unless it's gonna be a crowd
there's plenty of streams, and it will be uploaded here within 4 hrs
only get PPV's now when a few pals wanna crack open some beers

[big_james10]

I'm gonna order it. I originally wasn't going to but figured why not?

I will order it. I expect to see three good fights, which is more than I saw last weekend with both HBO and SHOWTIME broadcasting fights.

[viperz007]

That's really the main reason I'm ordering the fight.

[IIG]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/kurtbade...rtner=yahootix

Floyd Mayweather was a pay-per-view powerhouse for HBO with his nine PPV bouts generating $540 million in revenue on 9.6 million buys for the network. He was part of the three biggest non-heavyweight PPV events in boxing history. His success made him the highest-paid athlete in the world last year with earnings of $85 million. Mayweather’s star power convinced Showtime Sports to ink the 36-year-old pugilist to a 30-month deal in February that is expected to pay out more than $200 million if Mayweather fights six times.

Showtime is banking that Mayweather can still deliver a massive audience as the sport’s biggest star when he squares off Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas against Robert Guerrero. The network and its parent, CBS CBS +0.11%, are pulling out all of the stops to promote its first Mayweather fight as they bankroll the undefeated fighter in the hope he helps close the subscription gap between HBO and Showtime, which currently sits at around six million people.

Showtime appears headed for a massive PPV audience on par with some of Mayweather’s biggest fights based on early purchase data. “It is truly a last minute or last hour type purchase, but we are very pleased with the early indications we have,” says Stephen Espinoza, who runs Showtime Sports.

Mayweather’s biggest PPV fight was his 2007 split decision victory against Oscar De La Hoya. The bout had 2.4 million buys and remains the biggest boxing PPV event of all-time. The Guerrero fight won’t sniff that number. A better comparison is Mayweather’s last two fights against Miguel Cotto in 2012 (1.5 million buys) and Victor Ortiz in 2011 (1.25 million). Cotto is arguably the third biggest PPV draw in boxing and the 1.5 million buys was the second highest ever for a non-heavyweight fight. Showtime is unlikely to reach those levels, but Espinoza says the early sales data is trending better than the Ortiz fight with an outside shot of reaching the Cotto benchmark.

Showtime used its own network to promote the fight through 100 hours of boxing programming on the network ahead of the bout. The lineup included two documentaries, a five-part series All Access and live coverage of events leading up to Saturday’s fight. Showtime broadcast championship boxing events on April 20, featuring Canelo Alvarez versus Austin Trout, and April 27 with a headline bout of Danny Garcia and Zab Judah. Showtime also replayed past fights of both Mayweather and Guerrero.

Showtime’s promotion kicked into high gear this week with an aggressive TV marketing campaign tied to the NBA playoffs. Showtime also tapped the new CBS Sports Radio network, which includes 250 stations, to promote the fight both from editorial standpoint and through advertising.

De La Hoya’s company, Golden Boy Promotions, which is promoting the fight with Mayweather Promotions, brought Corona into the promotion. Corona is pushing the fight with point of purchase displays in more than 2,000 retail locations. O’Reilly Auto Parts has coupons for the PPV at its 3,800 locations. Mayweather partnered with NCM Fathom Events for a fifth time to show the fight in nearly 400 movie theaters.

Showtime utilized the assets of its parent, CBS, to push the fight as well. “CBS really flexed their muscles on this,” says Espinoza. CBS Outdoor has been active with outdoor advertising for the bout for six weeks. This includes billboards and ads on public transportation in major metros that have heavy Hispanic and black populations and include a significant number of fight fans. “For our prime demographic, outdoor advertising is extremely powerful,” says Espinoza.

CBS aired a documentary, Mayweather, last week that drew a tiny audience of 1.7 million. It was the least watched primetime show on CBS in April. But Espinoza says the film was a “win” for Showtime. He compares it to the last primetime boxing programming on network TV, which was a CBS show promoting the 2011 fight between Manny Pacquiao and Shane Mosley. It drew 1.1 viewers on CBS, so Espinoza calls the 50% jump a “huge boost.” Espinoza says the documentary reached a new demographic on CBS, as well. “We achieved what we set out to do which is to bring in a slightly different audience and a bigger platform to expose and hook into this promotion,” he says.

Mayweather has a $32 million guarantee for Saturday’s fight and Guerrero is slated to earn $3 million. It ties the largest guarantee in boxing history, which occurred a year ago for Mayweather’s fight against Cotto. Mayweather will make millions more based on the PPV audience. He keeps 90% of the profit from the event, according to Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer. Mayweather is a heavy favorite against Guerrero. Look for him to win inside and outside the ring Saturday night. Mayweather has earned his nickname of “Money.”

It sounds like Showtime and Golden Boy are anticipating huge numbers.

[Pockets]

Yes I can't wait to see Ghostbusters 3.

[Bullrider]

I'll take your bet. If Floyd wins I'll give you 10 billion. Confirm? If you lose you don't have to pay me. let me know on my page.

Thanks for the 10 billion points, bro.

[lfc19titles]

I am so glad I never

I will order his fight when he fights good competition