As confirmed in early April, the boxing world is getting ready for Manny Pacquaio to face Jeff Horn on July 2 at Suncorp Stadium.
Queensland is abuzz with the news as State of Origin and a World Title fight comes to the state in the same week.
But can this fight become the biggest fight that Australia has ever seen?
1. Ticket Sales – Must be more than 33,000
The record currently stands at 33,000, with it being set during Mundine versus Green I.
Suncorp Stadium can hold over 52,000 people and with the ground itself, they will be able to squeeze in a few hundred more. With Pacquaio being over the hill and Horn being a virtual nobody though, this could be a hard sell.
Main Event, of course, will jump all over the fight and will add plenty of viewers to the audience, as it has done for the Mundine versus Green bouts.
2. Promotion and Marketing – Needs to develop a story
This can not be just another fight – thankfully it isn’t.
Duco Events, who manage Horn, hope they can use State of Origin to promote the fight with Horn more than willing to wear a Queensland jersey into the ring in the hope that Pacquaio would don a NSW jersey upon his entry.
State of Origin is one of the biggest sporting events in the southern hemisphere and a cross-promotion could be great for both sports.
Horn could be a real life Aussie Rocky Balboa. The local Queensland fighter has been given a shot at the title with the much more experienced and what would be seen as unbeatable champ.
If the promoters can use this theme and get cross promotion and an underdog story for Horn it would be a great marketing tool for the fight.
3. The Undercard
Hopefully, the organisers of the fight learn from the mistakes of the recent Mundine-Green II and don’t embarrass the sport of boxing by putting a footballer in the ring with a miss-match.
Leave the boxing to the boxers. Surely there is enough upcoming or established talent out there to organise a decent undercard. Tim Tszyu would be a good fit if he isn’t fighting already while the Maloney Twins both have a good record and won their last fights.
This fight will hopefully surpass both the Mundine-Green bouts and if Horn can defeat Pacquaio it would be the upset of the century and cement his place on the boxing stage.
I can only wish him well.
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