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A22 SPORTS
Wednesday 6 november 2019
Fans get played as boxing takes back seat to UFC

By TIM DAHLBERG tions were sold or how
AP Sports Columnist many fans are subscribers
LAS VEGAS (AP) — The ring to the service, which offers
was empty, boxing's big- an attractive alternative for
gest attraction was taking fans turned off by the high
a nap and fans who paid price of boxing pay-per-
more than $1,000 a ticket views. Since its inception a
to see Canelo Alvarez and few years ago, DAZN has
Sergey Kovalev face off for refused to give out num-
the light heavyweight title bers on how many fans
were instead watching a spend either $20 a month
UFC fight from New York on or $100 a year for the fights.
the big screens at the MGM But it's no secret the com-
Grand Garden arena. pany needs viewer reve-
There was plenty of time nue after handing out big
for those watching at contracts to fighters like Al-
home on DAZN to take a varez, Anthony Joshua and
nap themselves. The fight Gennadiy Golovkin. Still, it's
wouldn't start until 1:15 a.m. hard to imagine people
on the East Coast because at home pulling out credit
the streaming service didn't cards at 1 a.m. to sign up.
want to go head-to-head That's especially true if they
with a UFC event — even Canelo Alvarez, center, stands over Sergey Kovalev as referee Russel Mora steps in after Alvarez were UFC fans who had just
with a fighter so popular knocked down Kovalev during a light heavyweight WBO title bout, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2019, in Las spent $80 on a largely un-
that DAZN signed him to a Vegas. Alvarez won by knockout. satisfactory card topped
$365 million contract that Associated Press by a fight that featured a
seemed to defy the logic promoters or the broad- fans is the norm in sports had decided to delay the made-up belt held aloft by
of boxing economics. caster in this case. They just these days, and boxing start of the Lakers-Clippers The Rock like it was a WWE
What that means to the made an incredibly bad is no exception. Joseph game on opening night event instead. The puzzling
future of boxing can be decision to delay the fight." Markowski, DAZN execu- because it went against decision to delay the fight
debated, as can DAZN's If the decision was bad, the tive vice president for North Game 1 of the World Series. came after a week that
role in that future. The sport optics were even worse. America, argued that the Again, it didn't have to DAZN was touting its place
has taken its lumps over Here was the television plat- company made the right happen. And it cheapens in boxing and its lineup of
the years, though DAZN is form with designs to take decision for the future of the product when boxing is fights over the next few
spending hundreds of mil- over boxing delaying one boxing — at least as it per- seen as subservient to UFC months. It's an impressive
lions of dollars in a gamble of its biggest fights of the tains to his company. when, in fact, both sports schedule that includes the
to televise some of its big- year simply because it was "Ultimately, we saw a surge have audiences of their heavyweight title rematch
gest fights. afraid of competing with in both subscription sign- own that don't overlap between Joshua and Andy
But there's no debating UFC. That meant the unsus- ups and audience from nearly as much as it might Ruiz Jr., though fight fans
that the bow-down to UFC pecting fans at the MGM the end of the UFC fight to seem at first glance. again will have to check
was not only an affront to Grand sitting and watching the beginning of our fight," "We're seeing the visibil- their clocks. The fight will
paying fans, but an embar- an empty ring much of the Markowski said. "The bot- ity and stature of some of be held in Saudi Arabia on
rassment to the sport itself. night. It meant boxing fans tom line was that more sports' biggest events de- Dec. 7 and with the time
"I absolutely see it as a slap at home having to stay up people watched Canelo pressed," said Espinoza, difference, fans in the U.S.
in the fact to boxing and it watching mostly filler ma- because of that. And that whose network is a rival of will have to watch in the af-
was self-inflicted in a way," terial until the fight finally was a good result for us." DAZN and has lost some ternoon — not a prime time
said Stephen Espinoza, ended after 2 a.m. That may be true, though big fights to the service. for drawing viewers — and
who heads boxing at the It should have meant an without seeing any num- "And that's bad for all of us." the fight will go off against
Showtime network. "No one apology from DAZN for bers it's hard to say for sure. Markowski declined to say college football confer-
forced this decision on the both. But inconveniencing Imagine, though, if the NBA how many new subscrip- ence championships. q

Dutch Olympic sprinter jailed

in drug smuggling case

DUESSELDORF, world championships.
Germany (AP) — The Dutch Olympic She also raced the 4x400 at the 2016
sprinter Madiea Ghafoor was sentenced Olympics, where the Dutch team was
to 8 1/2 years in prison on drug charges in eliminated in the heats.
Germany on Monday. Dpa reported Ghafoor's defense said
The court in the town of Kleve found Gha- she decided to take performance-en-
foor knowingly imported around 50 kilo- hancing drugs to improve her career and
grams of ecstasy and two kilograms of believed she was transporting similar sub-
methamphetamine from the Netherlands stances for other athletes, not narcotics.
into Germany in June, the German news She didn't say who had given her the
agency dpa reported. The 27-year-old drugs to transport, citing fears for her
Ghafoor reached the European Cham- safety and for that of people close to her.
In this Thursday, Aug. 9, 2018 file photo, Netherlands’ Madiea pionship final in the 400 meters last year The Dutch track and field federation said
Ghafoor competes during a woman’s 400 meter semi final race and was tipped to represent the Neth- the case would be referred to the coun-
at the European Athletics Championships in Berlin, Germany. erlands in the 4x400 relay at the recent try's doping authority.q
Associated Press