By Rick Horrow and Karla Swatek
February 22, 2013
Known just as much for his business acumen as his boxing skills, Floyd Mayweather Jr. has reached a deal with Showtime PPV to appear in as many as six fights over the next 30 months. Showtime beat out rival HBO for the rights, ending Mayweather’s 15-year, 23-fight affiliation with HBO Sports. Mayweather’s first Showtime fight will be May 4 against Robert Guerrero, marking Mayweather’s 10th PPV event. His previous nine PPV fights on HBO generated an average 1.07 million buys and $60.3 million in revenue.
The Showtime agreement is a revenue-sharing model that includes a significant, undisclosed monetary guarantee to Mayweather, meaning the financial risk to the boxer is limited. Fortunately, Showtime can use the marketing muscle of parent company CBS to promote fights across media platforms, including the CBS broadcast network. For HBO, however, the losses of Mayweather, his fights, and the acclaimed 24/7 documentary series will be devastating for the company’s boxing entertainment.
