A couple of entertainment fights amongst a solid card is a formula that resonates with a wider audience.
We have already connected with the sports market and casual fan.
If you want the sport to grow and compete for headlines in the front page not the sport section you have to appeal to that wider audience.
The participants of these bouts still train and get in the ring in front of a national audience, an audience they bring - something the should be given credit for. I see no complaints when there are pre-games before other sporting codes for charity its taken for what it is, a bit of fun for a good cause.
We still have more fights and fighters then any other promotion.
Comments about doing more harm than good are misplaced. When you have people like Sean Plunket talking on the radio for two day straight as whether he should fight, you are connecting with a main stream audience. Unfortunately, announcing a fight like papanui vs nik will not get anywhere near that coverage, even berridge vs papanui. The flow on effect to the super 8 is that more people will tune in and get to see well matched, exciting fights.
We still are staying true to our motto - every fight matters.
Last week we cut a talented fighter from the card because they wanted an easy fight, a win.
I respect that you want to see more pro fights, so do we.
I'd rather lose the opportunity to work with a fighter than compromise on our core product.
Pay-per-view is not the forum for padding your record.
We have already connected with the sports market and casual fan.
If you want the sport to grow and compete for headlines in the front page not the sport section you have to appeal to that wider audience.
The participants of these bouts still train and get in the ring in front of a national audience, an audience they bring - something the should be given credit for. I see no complaints when there are pre-games before other sporting codes for charity its taken for what it is, a bit of fun for a good cause.
We still have more fights and fighters then any other promotion.
Comments about doing more harm than good are misplaced. When you have people like Sean Plunket talking on the radio for two day straight as whether he should fight, you are connecting with a main stream audience. Unfortunately, announcing a fight like papanui vs nik will not get anywhere near that coverage, even berridge vs papanui. The flow on effect to the super 8 is that more people will tune in and get to see well matched, exciting fights.
We still are staying true to our motto - every fight matters.
Last week we cut a talented fighter from the card because they wanted an easy fight, a win.
I respect that you want to see more pro fights, so do we.
I'd rather lose the opportunity to work with a fighter than compromise on our core product.
Pay-per-view is not the forum for padding your record.