But someone who can put together big TV deals is not necessarily a promoter. “He’s a friend of mine and I admire the way he cares about his fighters. “I have great respect for Al,” the former Golden Boy Promotions CEO says. But then you should have someone you trust do it for you.” If you don’t want to talk to the media and the rest of the outside world, that’s fine. But they have someone who does it for them. Jerry Perenchio doesn’t talk to the press. “A lot of people choose not to talk to the press. “I would have dealt more openly with the media,” Schaefer says. Richard Schaefer, who has been one of Haymon’s staunchest allies over the years, is in accord. And forget about their communicating with you when you have questions about the larger picture.” You can’t get basic facts from PBC, like what weight a fight will be at or how many rounds it will be until they get around to sending it out in some kind of press release. “Most people in sports who don’t communicate with the press have someone who does it for them,” ESPN boxing writer Dan Rafael observes. But his dismissive stance has been counterproductive. He has an absolute right to not talk with the media. Haymon’s attitude toward the media has further damaged his cause. “Even boxing people don’t know when or where Al’s guys are fighting,” says promoter Gary Shaw. The date, time, and network for telecasts are often a mystery until late in the process. The scheduling of PBC’s fights has also been a problem. But you don’t effectively manage an organization by fiat or by ignoring the opinions of the people you’ve chosen to work with you.” If you’re the boss, everybody knows that you’re in charge and that you have the final vote. “Sometimes you have a monopoly on shortsightedness and stupidity. “Just because you’re the head of a department doesn’t mean that you have a monopoly on brains,” Abraham continued. “When that happened,” Abraham recalled several years ago, “I’d go into Bryant Park, sit down with a cup of cappucino, and ask myself, ‘Why do these very intelligent people have a view that’s different than mine?’ And often – not always, but often – I’d come around to their view.” There were occasions when Abraham thought one thing and they thought another. Seth Abraham, the architect of HBO Sports, put together a leadership team that included Ross Greenburg, Lou DiBella and Mark Taffet. That means, when he makes a mistake, it often goes uncorrected. And nobody cares.”įor starters, as elaborated upon in Part I of this series, Haymon has created an environment in which there are few checks and balances on his power. As Bart Barry of recently wrote, “Suddenly boxing is ubiquitous on free television, the last era’s Promised Land. Whatever Haymon’s master plan was, it’s not working. Al Haymon is demonstrating that it’s easier to spend money than it is to make it.Īs noted earlier, Premier Boxing Champions was built on the premise that there’s a much broader audience for boxing than the people who watch it on HBO and Showtime. Right now, PBC’s television contracts are showing a lot of red ink. Sports entities are valued as businesses in significant measure based on their television contracts. Skipper’s answer was direct and to the point: “Last time I checked my XY-axis quadrant, it’s not in the right quadrant.” During the Q&A portion of the program, Richard Sandomir of the New York Times asked, “For those of you who do and those of you who don’t associate with Al Haymon on the PBC, how do you think that strategy is going to play out in terms of building interest for boxing?” On May 20, 2015, NBC Sports Group chairman Mark Lazarus, CBS Sports President Sean McManus, Fox Sports President Eric Shank and ESPN President John Skipper discussed the future of broadcast sports in a forum moderated by Richard Deitsch of Sports Illustrated. By Thomas Hauser | THE RING’S Thomas Hauser in this special series sheds light on the powerful and mysterious boxing impresario Al Haymon and Premier Boxing Champions.
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