The never-ending saga that is Jeff Horn vs Terrence Crawford for the WBO welterweight title continues with another new date set for the fight.
The new match-up is set for 9 June at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. This is the third change to the fight – it may not be the last – and I cannot remember the last time a title fight took so long to get organised.
Originally the fight was set for 7 April at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, but due to the NHL team in Las Vegas making the playoffs, the arena was double-booked and the fight was moved.
The match-up was moved to a week later, on 14 April, and to Madison Square Garden in New York, with Manny Pacquaio on the undercard set to challenge the victor.
This would have been a tremendous coup for Horn as he would have been the first Aussie boxer to headline a major fight night at the MSG as the champion. Danny Geale challenged Gennady Golovkin for the IBO and WBA middleweight titles in 2014, but he was the challenger, not the champion.
But due to Pacquaio’s management thinking that an undercard fight is beneath him and Terence Crawford apparently injuring his hand sparring, the fight was again moved back to Vegas at the MGM Grand and six weeks were added to the fight date.
(Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
Horn’s camp accused Crawford of being “soft” along with many others back and forths on social media, but for now the date is set for 9 June. This many prove costly for Jeff Horn.
As the champ Horn is entitled to a percentage of the pay-per-view revenue that is generated for the fight from any Australian broadcaster. The only problem with 9 June is that UFC 225 is taking place in Chicago on the same night and fellow Aussie middleweight champ Robert Whittaker is due to defend his crown in a rematch against Yoel Romero.
Just looking at the card, ex-WWE star CM Punk is also fighting, so there’s even more reason to side with the UFC.
This means Horn could lose up to $1 million in revenue, as Main Event, which broadcasts both MMA and boxing in Australia, has already committed to UFC 225 and is unlikely to show both at the same time.
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Angus Pitt, the head of Main Event, told the Daily Telegraph in March: “We can’t show two world title fights at the same time.
“But there has been instances in the past where an (Australian boxer) has been booked on the same date as a UFC event.
“And they were able to go back and change the date.
“So fingers crossed Jeff Horn and his team will be able to do the same.”
Horn’s management have tried to set up meetings with co-promoter Bob Arum, who also promotes Crawford, to see if he is willing to change the date, but no response has been recorded.
Horn’s management has suggested a bundle package of both pay-per-view events for the day.
Even if the fight is moved again, it would be more beneficial financially to Horn, as his pay-per-view revenue would vastly increase and give his fight more exposure.
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