Stephen Espinoza refuses to rule out Showtime exit

ON THE eve of one of the biggest events in a stellar year for Showtime, there was deep uncertainty about the future of the sport on the network.

Amid reports that they are about to announce a decision to drop boxing from their scheduling altogether, Showtime Sports president Stephen Espinoza refused to rule out an exit.

Rumours on the ground here in Las Vegas, where Saul โ€˜Caneloโ€™ Alvarez will face Jermell Charlo on Showtime pay-per-view this Saturday, have suggested that an announcement confirming their curtain call could be made as early as next week.

And during an exclusive interview with Boxing News, Espinoza was unable to guarantee Showtimeโ€™s continuation in the sport.

โ€œIโ€™ve seen some of the sources – and some of them are comical to be completely honest,โ€ Espinoza said in response to the reports which started to circulate this week. โ€œIt sounds great from the outside but itโ€™s simply not the reality.

โ€œThese kind of rumours are something weโ€™ve dealt with consistently since at least 2018. I understand why they are happening now; Paramount is going through a lot of changes, in fact there have been a lot of changes throughout the media industry.

โ€œThe reality right here right now is that nobody knows what the future holds. All we can do is keep making the best fights and thatโ€™s our response. Everyone can say that weโ€™re going out of business, and that we have been since 2018, but all we do is continue to put on the biggest and best fights.โ€

Showtime has emerged as the home of Al Haymonโ€™s Premier Boxing Champions who have led the way in 2023 with their involvement in a series of lucrative fights, including the long-awaited welterweight showdown between Terence Crawford and Errol Spence.

And, given HBOโ€™s decision to drop boxing in 2019, it has been suggested that Showtime following suit would be a hammer blow for the sport.

โ€œThere hasnโ€™t been a decision made yet but anything could happen,โ€ Espinoza added. โ€œWhat I am confident of is that this sport always survives and that it will continue to thrive whether itโ€™s on Showtime for another 37 years or a transition to somewhere else. The sport is as healthy as it has been for a long, long time.

โ€œThere are a lot of changes going on, there have been lay-offs at every major media company. Itโ€™s not so much about a referendum on boxing but a referendum on how a company spends its money.

โ€œThere have been a lot of projects cut at a lot of networks that were very valuable. In trying to navigate this new business model, there are going to be some changes along the way. Whether boxing is one of those changes remains to be seen.โ€

One suggestion is that Showtime may decide to stay in boxing solely as a pay-per-view vehicle but Espinoza says that is not a viable solution.

โ€œIt doesnโ€™t make any sense and that is one of the things I have laughed at,โ€ Espinoza added. โ€œIt wouldnโ€™t make sense for either side. You could get one of 100 places to distribute a pay-per-view but having a pay-per-view without the stuff that actually builds it doesnโ€™t really have any value.

โ€œIt just would not work long term. Itโ€™s like a network saying they want to do the Super Bowl but donโ€™t want the rest of the season, or they want the Champions League but only the final and not the early rounds. It makes no sense.โ€

But, for now, Espinoza and Showtime are concentrating on what could turn out to be one of their last big events in boxing if the rumours turn out to be true. As it happens, this is also Caneloโ€™s first outing of a three-fight deal with PBC following a long run with Matchroom, who have promoted six of his last seven fights.

โ€œItโ€™s fantastic to have him back on Showtime,โ€ Espinoza says.

โ€œThis week has been phenomenal so far. Itโ€™s one of my favourite things about boxing: every event has a different personality, a different fanbase, vibe and energy. Thereโ€™s an undeniable star appeal of Canelo, thereโ€™s just a buzz when he walks into the room and the crowd he gets.

โ€œI have to give a lot of credit to PBC, they lead the deal and I think part of it was the depth of talent and therefore the type of match-ups heโ€™d have access to and the other part is Showtimeโ€™s expertise in pay-per-view. And having the demonstrated experience of making pay-per-view events bigger than anyone else, those two things were enough to bring him here.

โ€œIt has been a phenomenal year and part of that is having some key pieces of talent, obviously getting Crawford over allowed that fight with Errol Spence Jr to happen, then getting Canelo over for this was major for us too.โ€

Now the sport must wait to see if Showtime are planning to build on their success next year or if 2023 was merely a death rattle for boxing on the network.

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