Australia’s Premier Boxing Series aims to win over new fans with fresh, no-frills approach
Boxing has always had a problem attracting new fans.
Between the plethora of sanctioning bodies, poor judging decisions and irregular TV broadcasts, general sports fans seem to shrug and say “why bother?”.
The issues that drive a wedge between the product and a potential new audience are easily identified, yet hard to fix. Too many competing interests, most in the game would say.
There is no panacea to cure all of the sport’s ills. But small steps on a local scale can make a big difference.
Or to put in another way: drops of rain, as famed boxing trainer Bouie Fischer liked to say, can wear down a stone.
When Ace Boxing Promotions teamed up with Australian free-to-air streaming service 7plus to create the Premier Boxing Series, they changed the game. Domestically at least.
Two months and three shows into their partnership, and the Premier Boxing Series has delivered on their remit: to make regular, compelling contests that will covert casual fans into full-time members of what was once called “the fancy”.
“We have been very happy with the results,” said Glenn Hosking of Ace Boxing. “I think that the audience is responding well to it where we are getting really strong viewer numbers. There’s been some great fights and some good talent unearthed, so things are going to plan so far.”
The latest show on May 8 was headlined by a thrilling six-round contest between former Australian cruiserweight champion Ben Kelleher and Joshua ‘Chucky’ Francis, a fast-paced affair that was won on points by the visiting Kiwi. It was a fitting finale to the card that saw seven bouts broadcast in a three-hour TV slot. There is no filler on these shows, no lag between fight and definitely no auctions.
“That’s what we a going for, that fast pace,” said Hosking, whose next show at the Southport Sharks AFL Club on the Gold Coast on May 29 will feature an international contest between junior middleweights Dan Hill and Tae Kyun Kim and a female fight between junior lightweights Deanha Hobbs and Angel Rushton, amongst others.
“Everyone does it differently. We what do is try to deliver the entertainment between the ropes as quickly as possible and showcase as many fighters as we can on our cards.
“That’s what we feel like that’s what the audience wants. They want to see more action and less talk and that’s what we are trying to deliver.”
The broadcast team of play-by-play announcer Andy Raymond and color commentator Nathan Di Carlo have been working together for years. It’s a pairing that simply works.
“Andy Raymond is well known in Australian sports. He has had a long career with Fox Sports with the motor racing and the NRL and he has done boxing forever, he is almost the voice of boxing in Australia,” said Hosking.
“And the thing I really enjoy about Nathan’s commentary is that there is no sugar-coating with it. He calls it exactly as he sees it. You may not agree with it, but he’s not going to blow smoke up anyone’s ass.
“I feel like the audience is not stupid. They know what they are looking at. And Nathan’s role is to offer some insights where he can, but to be honest with the audience. He’s not a fanboy commentator, he’s very genuine in what he thinks and sees. I think that resonates well.
“I think they’re a great team. They get on well together, even if they are a bit chalk and cheese, but sometimes that’s a good thing.”
Ace Boxing was started by Angelo Di Carlo more than two decades ago and the promotional company has put on a remarkable 123 cards in that time. Competitive matchmaking has always been a cornerstone of Ace’s shows and although Di Carlo has taken a step back from the business recently to focus on his health, the company remains committed to delivering fan-friendly fights.
“Angelo has been matching the best cards in Australia for the past 24 years,” Hosking said. “Everyone in Australia knows that and nearly everyone has seen it. But it’s not something that we’ve just been doing recently, it’s been going on for 24 years.”
Ace Boxing will be rolling out shows around the country with other promoters in different state capitals under the Premier Boxing Series banner. The first of these will be with Team Ellis at the Melbourne Pavilion when fan-favorite Jack Brubaker challenges Mitchell Leek for his Australian middleweight title on June 19. Other shows are also planned for Sydney and Perth.
“We have a stable of fighters who we promote but we also work with everybody in the boxing community,” Hosking continued. “We want to showcase to the public what good fights look like. We’re not interested in mismatches or padding people’s records or anything like that. We want to put on nice, good, even contests and let them duke it out in the ring, which is what the sport is all about.”
The audience-centric approach seems to be paying dividends.
“I agree with that. And that’s probably the most important thing to us. We’re not taking our audience for granted and presenting them with something and telling them what it is they are watching. We want them to make up their own minds,” said Hosking.
“As you know in boxing, when it comes to decisions, you and I can watch the same fight and have total different opinions on who won and how it was won and all of the rest of it. Part of the beauty of the sport is people can watch pretty much the same thing and see it from a different perspective.
“Delivering the quality of the fights is the number one priority for us, rather than trying to make superstars or padding out people’s records for the sake of it. We just look to put on the best fights that we can.”
All of this may seem like small steps in a local market, but it is already making a difference to the quality of boxing we are seeing on our screens.
Drops of rain wear down a stone.
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