Fighters and promoters agree: SHOWTIME World Boxing Classic is great for boxing
SHOWTIME senior vp of sports Ken Hershman at the podium
Everyone involved in SHOWTIME's World Boxing Classic agrees the event has the potential to be great.
"This is a sign of change in boxing," said Carl Froch (25-0, 20 KOs), the WBC super middleweight champ who will take on upstart Andre Dirrell (18-0, 13 KOs) in a Group Stage 1 bout in October. "The good thing is I'm fullfilling my mandatory obligations in a wonderful tournament."
Of the six fighters involved, Froch, Dirrell, Andre Ward (19-0, 12 KOs), Jermain Taylor (28-3-1, 17 KOs), Mikkel Kessler (41-1, 31 KOs) and Arthur Abraham (30-0, 24 KOs), Abraham probably has the most to lose.
In addition to having to relinquish his IBF middleweight championship belt, he is moving up in weight from 160 to 168 for the tournament. Abraham is confident he won't have any issues.
"It won't be difficult," Abraham told Newsday through an interpreter. "It's better for me. I've lost too much weight."
Abraham will face Jermain Taylor in a Group Stage 1 matchup.
Aside from the exposure the tournament could bring to the fighters and the sport, each fighter agreed knowing that they are guaranteed three quality bouts will help them focus.
"One great thing is you get to avoid the usual nightmare of not knowing who you will fight next," said Froch. "In this tournament we get several fights against the best in the world."
For Kessler, who will take on Ward, the tournament will give him the opportunity to get past recent problems with his former promoter. It will also allow him to get past the fact that he won't be able to avenge the only loss of his career to Joe Calzaghe.
"I wanted the rematch with Calzaghe, but he retired," Kessler said. "I have a lot to look forward to [with the tournament]."
It wasn't all roses at the press conference at Madison Square Garden, however, as SHOWTIME senior vice president and general manager for sports Ken Hershman was asked why the tournament wasn't an eight-man round-robin. And why fighters such as Lucien Bute and Allan Green.
Hershman said they explored the possibility of an eight-man tournament, but to do so would've been too "long and drawn out and very unwieldy".
As for the selection of fighters, Hershman wouldn't go into details other than to say the six fighters chosen were the only six they approached.
Lou DiBella, who promotes Taylor, said he was on board almost instantly.
"The fact that Ken got five promoters to sign on the dotted line and that a fighter like Arthur Abraham was willing to give up his belt to do this showed me how committed they were," said DiBella.
This will also be a boost for SHOWTIME, which has always played second fiddle to HBO in the boxing world. "This is a great example of No.2 making a big move on No.1," said one local promoter, who asked not to be identified.
"It's a mistake for HBO to have so many eggs in one basket," the promoter said in reference to HBO's relationship with Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank.
- MARCUS HENRY
Photo credit: Tom Casino/SHOWTIME
E-mail
Facebook
Digg
Delicious
Comments (3)
Hello. It's the soul's duty to be loyal to its own desires. It must abandon itself to its master passion. Help me! It has to find sites on the: Cheap international student flights. I found only this - cheap Flights to bermuda. How to book cheap flights for the holidays. Ca has your cheap flights and hotels for this intimate dutch metropolis. With love :cool:, Kohana from South.
Excuse me. I wrote myself a check for ten million dollars for acting services rendered and dated it Thanksgiving 1995. I put it in my wallet and it deteriorated. And then, just before Thanksgiving 1995, I found out I was going to make ten million dollars for Dumb & Dumber. I put that check in the casket with my father because it was our dream together. Help me! Please help find sites for: Learn online stock trading. I found only this - day Trading the stock market. Today, vein readers secure nuclear facilities, ports, power plants and sensitive data at universities. Pre school toys details information from china pre school toys buy die cast toys buy. THX :o, Wakeman from Myanmar.
Hi! nOkWafen