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Originally posted by HeroBando
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"When Al Haymon came on board we were at an impasse. I met with him and both agreed we were going to do the best to keep Adonis with HBO and we set our parameters. After that I flew in to New York and met with Peter Nelson. In that meeting I made an offer that would have closed the overall deal. He told me their offer was the best he could do and [he said regardless] we were not going to get anything better anywhere."
"In his opinion, Showtime had spent all their money on Mayweather. I was persistent and came back 3 times with a lesser request each time. The last offer I made to him was the following: We wanted to pay Stevenson $300,000 more than we were able to pay him with the actual deal, for the Fonfara fight. So Al Haymon was going to take 100K from his pocket, 100k from mine and I requested HBO to add only 100K to the pot."
"I had the mandate by Adonis’s representative to make the proposal and sign the deal if HBO would have agreed. I was 100% convinced it was not going to be a big deal for them. In the mean time I got a call from Kathy asking me where we were. At one point we were not in agreement together [on the] eventual split for a rematch [required by HBO at their option]. I said to her we were going to address it later as I was trying to close the overall HBO deal, but we were not very far [apart] and I was convinced we were going to have a positive conclusion."
"I was stunned when Peter told me he was rejecting it. He also said - 'you see Yvon you have no other alternative and you can’t get another deal elsewhere so please tell Adonis to agree to the deal.' We then reached the deadline date set by HBO for my and Adonis’ approval [March 11]. The next day, March I2, I had a conversation with [Showtime Sports head] Stephen Espinoza, who asked me if he could make us an offer. On March 14 I got a proposal from Showtime. You know everything else. I immediately sent the proposal to HBO who had the right to match and they did not."
"In his opinion, Showtime had spent all their money on Mayweather. I was persistent and came back 3 times with a lesser request each time. The last offer I made to him was the following: We wanted to pay Stevenson $300,000 more than we were able to pay him with the actual deal, for the Fonfara fight. So Al Haymon was going to take 100K from his pocket, 100k from mine and I requested HBO to add only 100K to the pot."
"I had the mandate by Adonis’s representative to make the proposal and sign the deal if HBO would have agreed. I was 100% convinced it was not going to be a big deal for them. In the mean time I got a call from Kathy asking me where we were. At one point we were not in agreement together [on the] eventual split for a rematch [required by HBO at their option]. I said to her we were going to address it later as I was trying to close the overall HBO deal, but we were not very far [apart] and I was convinced we were going to have a positive conclusion."
"I was stunned when Peter told me he was rejecting it. He also said - 'you see Yvon you have no other alternative and you can’t get another deal elsewhere so please tell Adonis to agree to the deal.' We then reached the deadline date set by HBO for my and Adonis’ approval [March 11]. The next day, March I2, I had a conversation with [Showtime Sports head] Stephen Espinoza, who asked me if he could make us an offer. On March 14 I got a proposal from Showtime. You know everything else. I immediately sent the proposal to HBO who had the right to match and they did not."
Seems to me HBO about to blow Stevenson-Kovalev. #boxing
— Dan Rafael (@danrafaelespn) March 24, 2014
@ChrisMannixSI If it happens, HBO brought it on itself. Could had this wrapped up ages ago for a tiny amount of additional money.
— Dan Rafael (@danrafaelespn) March 25, 2014
By all accounts, HBO had 2-fight deal agreed to w/ Stevenson/Yvon Michel. HBO's screw up was not getting it signed in Jan when they agreed.
— Dan Rafael (@danrafaelespn) March 25, 2014
How do you let a deal like that sit unsigned when there are people in #boxing whose mission it is to screw things up? For shame, HBO.
— Dan Rafael (@danrafaelespn) March 25, 2014
A lot of anger and bitter words can’t conceal fact HBO’s 2013 misstep led to loss of Adonis Stevenson
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/boxing...NTHS0AHTNNbK5_
The bid had nothing to do with Haymon's 500m. GYM always had more money than Main Events. Stevenson's events in Canada were making money as well as Bute's and GYM's other cards in Canada. GYM didn't need Haymon to outbid Main Events. Remember, Kovalev had to travel to Canada as the champion twice, and got his biggest paydays from Pascal.
Michel even told her if she doesn't want to do the purse bid bring him a proposal from HBO and he'll bring a proposal from PBC. Kathy never responded.
"Bring the proposal from HBO and I bring a proposal from a PBC-affiliated network and we go where it has the most value," he said. "I'm willing to negotiate but she has to be willing to maximize the revenue. If she doesn't want to do that then stop trying to make everyone believe we tried to avoid Kovalev. When the WBC decided to name the winner of Kovalev-Pascal the mandatory we were on board and we are not backing out. Let's go with the network that can put up the most money."
And in her letter to the WBC turning down the purse bid she never mentioned Haymon or his 550 million
In her letter to Sulaiman, Duva wrote, in part, "There are numerous factors which make a purse bid on April 17th impractical. Please allow me to explain. First of all, we are still finalizing arrangements for the IBF mandatory fight with Mohammedi, which will take place this summer. It would be entirely incongruous to hold a purse bid for the subsequent Stevenson bout prior to finalizing the Mohammedi bout. Second of all, the early bid that has been proposed would necessarily violate the WBC rules and cause financial hardship.
"Rule 2.21 states that championship contracts are due for presentment within seven days of a purse bid. It also states that the date and location must be specified within 15 days of a purse bid. It is quite difficult to specify a date for the Stevenson bout months before the Mohammedi bout takes place. Typically, purse bids are built upon offers from television networks and sites. As television networks generally focus upon one bout at a time, and as so many worldwide networks are focused primarily on the upcoming megafight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather right now, a Kovalev/Stevenson bout is not yet on their radar.
"Similarly, sites want certainty, as well. Kovalev and Stevenson are both scheduled to fight other opponents this summer. As we all know, this is boxing and anything can happen. Fighters could be injured or even lose a match. When an arena locks in a date, it locks out others who may wish to contract for the arena on that same date. The same holds for major television networks. Thus the reluctance of arenas and networks in this regard is understandable."
Duva went on to write that while she was ready to negotiate with Michel "on a 50-50 co-promotion basis at this time, in contrast, a purse bid must necessarily be made based upon a fixed number. In all practicality, no matter how much time one needs to promote this bout, its value cannot be determined accurately so very far in advance."
"Rule 2.21 states that championship contracts are due for presentment within seven days of a purse bid. It also states that the date and location must be specified within 15 days of a purse bid. It is quite difficult to specify a date for the Stevenson bout months before the Mohammedi bout takes place. Typically, purse bids are built upon offers from television networks and sites. As television networks generally focus upon one bout at a time, and as so many worldwide networks are focused primarily on the upcoming megafight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather right now, a Kovalev/Stevenson bout is not yet on their radar.
"Similarly, sites want certainty, as well. Kovalev and Stevenson are both scheduled to fight other opponents this summer. As we all know, this is boxing and anything can happen. Fighters could be injured or even lose a match. When an arena locks in a date, it locks out others who may wish to contract for the arena on that same date. The same holds for major television networks. Thus the reluctance of arenas and networks in this regard is understandable."
Duva went on to write that while she was ready to negotiate with Michel "on a 50-50 co-promotion basis at this time, in contrast, a purse bid must necessarily be made based upon a fixed number. In all practicality, no matter how much time one needs to promote this bout, its value cannot be determined accurately so very far in advance."
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