Only if you have been a boxing fan living under a rock these recent months would you be negligent to the fact that this coming weekend marks the debut of boxing on one of the top sports streaming platforms, DAZN.
Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing made waves when he revealed that he had reached an exclusive agreement with DAZN, rumored to be worth $1 billion over possibly eight years, to kickstart the service.
From it’s original announcement, this weekend’s heavyweight title fight between IBF/WBA/WBC champion Anthony Joshua and former champion Alexander Povetkin was targeted as the kick off point for DAZN moving forward.
And Hearn didn’t waste too much time in signing talent thereafter, as he picked up WBO junior welterweight champion Maurice Hooker, WBA junior featherweight champion Danny Roman, former two-division champion Jessie Vargas, former champion Demetrius Andrade, and his most impressive signing in reigning IBF/WBA/WBC/WBO cruiserweight champion Oleksandr Usyk.
And there are already several events lined up, as Vargas will headline an Oct. 6 show in Chicago vs. Former title challenger Thomas Dulorme, with Roman defending his title vs. once-beaten Gavin McDonnell on the undercard. Also on that show will be heavyweight contender Jarrell Miller facing former champion Tomasz Adamek, IBF light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev facing unbeaten Callum Johnson, and undefeated prospect Shawn Simpson, amongst others.
Two weeks later the sport will be treated to a dandy, as Hearn reached a deal with Frank Warren to stage a WBO middleweight showdown between champion Billy Joe Saunders and Andrade, set to take place in Boston.
And it also has been revealed that Usyk will be defending his titles on Nov. 10 vs. Former champion Tony Bellew, from the Manchester Arena in London.
In addition to these fights, DAZN will be playing host the World Boxing Super Series, which is an elimination-style tournament featuring some of the best fighters at cruiserrweight, junior welterweight, and bantamweight going up against one another, with the prestigious Ali Trophy being on tap for the winner.
DAZN also has an exclusive agreement with Bellator, the combat sports league that will be bringing them several events per year.
Seems like a good start, but the only problem that could likely arise is that so many fighters in the sport of boxing are aligned with other promoters and other networks.
Bob Arum’s Top Rank umbrella has an exclusive content deal with ESPN for several years to come, as his roster, with such names as Terence Crawford, Vasyl Lomachenko, Jose Ramirez, Shakur Stevenson, Teofimo Lopez, and others, will be showcasing their skills on that platform.
Powerful adviser Al Haymon also still is very deep with his roster of fighters, including Errol Spence Jr., Deontay Wilder, Jarret Hurd, Jermell and Jermall Charlo, Shawn Porter, Danny Garcia, Keith Thurman, Adrien Broner, Omar Figueroa, Erislandy Lara, and many, many others. Haymon recently inked two multi-year deals with SHOWTIME and Fox, and he will have several dates to keep his stable, called Premier Boxing Champions, very busy.
Still remains to be seen where the likes of Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin will also go, as the two men thrilled fans over the weekend in Las Vegas in their rematch. Canelo edged Golovkin out in what was rumored to be the final fight of each man’s contract with HBO.
No matter how you place it, it’s a great time to be a boxing fan with so much taking place. But we still have to wait and see just how much of a statement DAZN makes early on.
