it's exciting you know the world is changing the way people are digesting
content is changing you know we live in a world now where traditional
broadcasting methods are yesterday's news people aren't watching conventional TV
on a TV anymore and you know the demand for streaming the demand for
subscription TVs is everything's changing in front of us but every market
is different you know you look at the UK market we have a great boxing market
there now and also a pay-per-view market but with a very different price point to
that of the U.S. we're holding pay-per-view events at $25 okay over
here you're talking about $60, $70, $100 for a pay-per-view night and in my opinion
so that's meaning that the big fights are not easily accessible for the paying
public and for the boxing fans so what we're trying to do here is something
completely different the fun thing about what we're trying to do as well is we're
building from the ground up so we have the opportunity to build a platform a
home of boxing for fight fans essentially by fight fans which is us
now i've been watching boxing since I was seven years, old I've been going to live
shows since I was eight years old I love boxing
it's everything to me so we're not going to allow this to fail we want to make
sure that all the things that we don't like about boxing we can try and change
at Dazn. Small things as well talking about why go on air at 10 or 11 o'clock
with one or two fighters why not go on air at 6 o'clock to show the entire
night of boxing give great value acquiring
content not only if we got the 16 shows from the US we've got the 16 shows from
the UK that we're promoting as well with you've now got the world boxing super
series so all of a sudden you know now how you're talking about 16 shows 16
shows 15 shows now you're up you're up to a significant fight night of course couple
that with the Bellator announcements and other announcements to come I think
we've got a great chance here and you're always gonna get your critics you're
always going to be fighting the system and that's something it's been so
enjoyable over the last probably months since we were last in New York that
signing fighters making fights you're up against the system those who say they
don't care those that want to talk down about a streaming platform and all this
are the same guys that are scrambling frantically to try and stop your
progression but that's exciting to me you know that's that's what makes me
tick so we've made some great progress we've signed about seven or eight fighters
so far I think we'll be up to close to double figures by the time we
have our first press conference to announce our first show which will be
July 17 and you know I can't wait I think I think this is the future of not
just boxing but the way people digest content and the way people watch TV well
when I talk about the 12 standard shows and the four I call it "monsters" there is
a more technical word for that within our business and but there the four
shows that really those pay-per-view sized shows where you are traditionally
spending your hundred dollars to watch one night of boxing on TV also by the
way I feel that when there's a pay-per-view show in America the depth
of the card is just not enough if you're going to be spending that kind of money
you should have championship fights from 6 p.m. till midnight and you should sit
around your TV with your friends having a barbecue whatever you're doing
pizzas beers and you should have a full night's entertainment not a little bit
of rubbish and then a main event so what we're looking to do like I said is to
have championship boxing not just on the four big ones but every show so you have
your twelve sort of standard big cards so they're your typical HBO Showtime
Saturday night world championship fights but in my opinion
ours will be much deeper then you have you four what we'll replicate
pay-per-view fights so rather than spending your $70 or $100 for one night
they're built within your monthly subscription on Dazn and that's what
we're trying to change so within a monthly subscription you might get a
pay-per-view style night within our four, you might get one or two of our U.S. shows
a UK show and a world boxing Super Series show all of a sudden for a tenth
of the price of a pay-per-view so that's really the model on those is to throw in
those big nights and dates that we will focus on in advance
so the first one of those would be in November and the plan is to put on a
colossal night of boxing in November and also big nights around that. All kinds
of interesting conversations going on right now you know obviously we just
finished the Joshua Wilder stuff you know Joshua is gonna fight Povetkin next
we'll announce that soon and that's something that Dazn is looking to
acquire as well and that would be a major coup to bring the biggest star in
world boxing to the platform.
I think we have to bring something different and I
think you look at our UK shows you look at the style the energy the brand the look
the feel all of this that we have to be different but also understand what works
and what doesn't work so when I talk about building from the ground up I'm
talking about our presentation team I'm talking about our commentary team that's
got to be what the fight fans want you know we want the credible guys we want
the knowledgeable guys what are we doing in terms of the shows we bring a new
live experience to shows interaction with the fans more music different kind
of vibe a different kind of look we need to bring that audience down a little
bit in terms of the age numbers making trendy and sexy again as well we need to
get great fights that's the key because boxing is a great sport boxing is a
great product and if you get the fights you're going to make sure that the fans
enjoy the show so we need the big names of course we do but we also need to
build these cards from six o'clock through to midnight not 10 til midnight
see how we get on so we need to do a lot of things that are different to the way
that traditional promoters and broadcasters are working you know like
where the situation where we might be with a broadcaster in the States and
we'll say Sansa is walking out we've got this marching band coming in and these
fireworks and and the broadcaster might say we haven't got time for that ya know, let's just
get him out that's not for us this is a show when you spend your dollar and you're
in that arena you have to leave saying that was worth every cent and that's not
just about the fighters that's about the fans experience that's about the
walk-ons the music that anthems the interaction all of that kind of stuff so
we've conquered the UK we have a great brand we have a great production we have
a great in-arena experience and we have to bring that to the US we have to
understand the market as well you know sorts of comments from Richard
Schaefer, "Oh he doesn't know anything about the U.S. audience." We're people ya know?
you're the same as me you're just living in a different country you love live
sport you love a great night out you love music you like dressing up you
love having a great time that's what we have to deliver you know
sometimes when I go to a boxing show I'll sit around and you know there might
be a fan sort of watching the fight with a 3 liter coke and maybe some
popcorn you know and i look at it and i think what is that?! That is everything we have to work against
with what is happening right now. go to a UFC show perhaps and you might see a guy
with his girlfriend dressed up drinking champagne on their feet full of
energy excited by the build up excited by the hype that's what we want to create
it's not just about having a drink or getting dressed up it's the whole experience
it's about working on the build-up to fights to create a fight hype to create
narratives to create stories around shows so that when you get in the arena
and how many people sit in those arenas now in the US and don't even know who's fighting?
or they don't know where the fighters come from or watch their story or the
fact that this guy and oh I always look at Daniel Jacobs an example this is one
of the greatest stories in boxing you know this is one of the smartest guys in
boxing one of the best fighters in boxing we pick him up at the back end of
his career no one knows the story of Danny Jacobs this is an incredible story
we have to try and tell it but that gets built normally from the ground up so
that when fighters become a world champion they're a huge star already you
know and that's what we have to do as well with Dazn and with Sporting News
and with all our platforms to sell the profiles of these fighters that people
say why would you sign with Hearn, the reason that you sign with Hearn and Matchroom is
1, we're excellent promoters. 2, we know how to guide the career of a fighter 3,
we have a fantastic relationship with a great new platform in Dazn they're
going to be paying fighters a lot of money but most importantly we're the
team of people building the profile we need to build these fighters in their
hometowns not enough fighters are being recognized or built in their hometown
that's the basics of talent marketing you build from the ground outwards if
there's a guy from Maryland or Washington and you're fighting in Vegas
it's like why? you should be boxing in Maryland. Surely you're gonna get a great
atmosphere there look at when Terence Crawford boxed in Omaha
when Wilder boxes in Alabama they care it's passion these people are taking
their shirts off they're screaming for their own man that's what we want we don't
want these guys. We want these guys come on passion passion for
sport that's why it's all about and obviously you're not gonna be in you can
never be as passionate more so than for one of your own so I feel like this whole
tour of America that we'll be doing with Dazn we need to explore these places
Chicago Washington Miami Minnesota areas that haven't been exposed to boxing
cities and towns that you can go to and they go wow you're bringing a big
boxing show here thank you I mean I think ESPN are going to go to New Orleans
Great! You know you look at the demographic or the breakdown sorry of of
the Geographic breakdown and viewership for boxing
New Orleans is right up there. So now you go to a city that loves boxing
there's got one now Regis pro-gross they're going to embrace their own
fantastic so let's, New York is great, LA is great, and Vegas is great but
let's bring boxing to the roots in America as well and make sure that when
we're on air we're creating that experience and that noise the viewer
can look at a screen or a laptop or a phone and think wow I want to be there and
that's what's been lacking in my opinion for US boxing.
So you're gonna get
between eight and ten announcements on July the 17th and new fighters you'll
get our first show annouced as well and those guys that you mentioned Charlo,
Errol Spence, Mikey Garcia for example those guys we're in conversations
with a lot of those guys so this is gonna be a period where over the next
three or four months you're gonna see the big names signing with Dazn
you're already gonna see world champions and big names signing with Dazn
in the next couple of weeks for our announcement so I'm very happy with the
signings that we've made you know great undefeated fighters world champions and
also something that's really that makes me tick is the new kid the new kids on
the block, you know the kids coming out of the US national team
golden gloves champions we're gonna be building those over
next couple years as well giving them seven eight fights a year and exposing
them to the public and making the public follow their story from the debut this
is how you turn people into stars you don't get to a stage with a 20-0 and start working
on them and then they win a world chart title and they're huge you have to build
from the base and that's what we will be doing with probably half a dozen
fighters turning pro as well so yeah coming up you know like I said you're
gonna see those guys you're going to see those guys they're 12, 15, 20 and 0 on the verge
of challenging for world titles you're going to see world champions announced as
well and our first show which will be coming soon