Al Bello - Getty Images
Oscar De La Hoya suggests Bob Arum is greedy. Oh, also, he believes ticket prices and PPV charges should be enormous for Mayweather vs Pacquiao. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
This one is up there for all-time great Oscar De La Hoya moments. Speaking with the Los Angeles Times, Oscar De La Hoya called Bob Arum greedy for wanting to build a temporary, 40,000-seat venue for a potential fight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr ... while also suggesting that they should just hold it at the MGM Grand and raise ticket prices to unheard-of amounts and also increase the cost of the pay-per-view.
"Floyd Mayweather guarantees his own purses . . . the 40,000-seat venue is baloney," De La Hoya said. "Have we ever needed a 40,000-seat venue for me? When I fought Julio Cesar Chavez Sr., we could've filled a 100,000-seat venue.
"But how greedy do we have to be? The MGM [Grand] is right there. There's enough money to go around, we don't have to be pigs here."
De La Hoya agreed ticket prices at MGM would likely be steeply escalated from their normal big-fight range, and that the pay-per-view price would similarly be bumped up.
If anyone really thinks that Oscar De La Hoya is "doing it for the fans :) :) :)" any more than any other promoter is, please take this to heart. Oscar De La Hoya just wants to jack up the prices on you for this fight, but he starts it by accusing Arum of greed. This is easy -- Oscar knows that if you say something bad about Evil Bob Arum, a lot of people will go, "Yeah! Finally someone's calling that guy out on his bullshit!"
The problem is that De La Hoya plays the same crap games that Bob Arum plays. In response to this statement, in the same LA Times article, Arum called De La Hoya "stupid," and says he "knows nothing."

Where do you think he learned boxing promotion? A seminar with Don Chargin? Did he order some video tapes from Don King? He learned it by watching you, dad! I mean, Bob Arum.
"Big fights" in Vegas are already high roller business. Your average boxing fan cannot afford to go to Vegas, buy a ticket for a Mayweather or Pacquiao fight, and enjoy any kind of personal connection with the sport. I understand that they still make more money in Vegas than anywhere else, and that fights happen there for a reason, and that's not soon going to change.
The idea of building a temporary outdoor stadium in Las Vegas is not new. It was done many, many times in the past, and honestly it's a great idea for this type of fight, particularly pushed back to November. No, they can't make that happen in May. But truthfully, I see nothing wrong with the suggestion. As much as I want to see the fight in May, the suggestion itself is not a bad one.
Poor Oscar, he just doesn't understand that he sounds just like every other promoter. He wants your money. And if he's going to be involved in making this fight a reality, he wants, like, all of your money.
By the way, how high would you be willing to go on pay-per-view for this fight? If this fight had been made two years ago, I honestly expected them to go up to about $80 for the show. But now?
0 recs | 30 comments
$100
Would pay $100 and maybe even up to $150.. I am sure I can get people in for the fight.. I would be more than happy to pay that b/c I know finally we can be done talking about this fight and move on with our lives
memphizbell - January 17, 2012
You’d pay nearly triple the price because they finally delivered the fight after jerking you around for two years?
Sammlung - January 17, 2012
Sorry to sound snotty, but I’ll never forgive these guys for delaying this fight well past its best date. Even if it does happen now I’ll still have to wonder what if it happened in 2009…
Sammlung - January 17, 2012
I’m sure they’ll jack it up at least $10, so probably $70 for SD and $80 for HD. Any price increase is bullshit and pure greed. More than $10 is just fleecing hardcore and casual fans alike. Will people pay it? Sure many would, but it doesn’t make it right.
Sammlung - January 17, 2012
I’d buy that for a dollar
Elstriko - January 17, 2012 via Android app
I think I’d find up to $80 for HD fair enough in the sense that I do understand it WILL go up, and that there’s no getting around it. More than that and I believe they’re unnecessarily greeding out, bad.
Of course I don’t think we’ll ever find out.
Scott Christ - January 17, 2012
$80.
BoxingOutlivesFads - January 17, 2012
I’d pay about £20 on Sky Box Office assuming it would end up on there.
Shitali Klitschko - January 17, 2012 via mobile
That would be interesting – Sky has abandoned PPV boxing, though I’m sure they could be persuaded to stage a one-off PPV for something like this, but if not, could Warren put in a strong enough bid to attract customers to BoxNation simply for that fight?
Scott Christ - January 17, 2012
Theres reports (with no real basis) that Warren/BoxNation are doing badly and not getting the required amount of subscribers to break even. Its sad, but seemed an overly optimistic project from the start. :(
My guess other than SBO is Primetime (who have shown recent Pac/Floyd bouts and have a rich owner) or normal Sky.
Shitali Klitschko - January 18, 2012 via mobile
Yeah I’ve heard the talk that BoxNation is struggling. It’s a real shame, because Warren truly did come out of the gates with a good lineup, and is still providing a very good schedule. Hopefully it gets turned around if it is indeed failing. It’s such a good channel, and speaking as someone from the US who has to watch UK cards via stream, I truly appreciate having English commentary for things like the Sauerland cards, and the chance to watch Bunce be Bunce during a show. Creatively and in terms of presentation, I think they’ve been a great success. Business-wise, no idea, but smoke, fire, etc.
Scott Christ - January 18, 2012
All of this is IRRELEVANT. The fight isn't happening. Why? "Jinkee says Cotto"
APG1 - January 17, 2012
I put down $80, for a fight of this magnitude I wouldn’t feel ripped off paying the extra $15 or whatever. Any more than that and I would have to start looking long and hard at the undercard.
theninthlayer - January 17, 2012
The undercard will just be 9 pm – 11:30 pm of video packages and interviews with the celebrities sitting in $5000 nose bleeds.
Scott Christ - January 17, 2012
Or maybe they will just replay the weigh-in on loop so we can hear some of the worst “comedy” in history of mankind for three hours.
Kory Kitchen - January 17, 2012
Well there’s another negotiation sticking point. Does Top Rank get to let Jalen Rose stumble around, or does Golden Boy get to bring in more fourth-rate comedians — also, are there any semi-famous Filipino comedians? Because Golden Boy loves to do that for black guy vs Mexican guy, and then the black guy comedian is all, “Black people do this,” but the Mexican fellow says, “on the contrary, Mexico people are like this,” and GOD we all LAUGH and LAUGH and LAUGH
Scott Christ - January 17, 2012
I forgot Jo Koy!
He can do it!
Does he do any “Filipinos do this” jokes, though?
Scott Christ - January 17, 2012
Roger Mayweather has an absolute ton
Tedd Welch - January 18, 2012
No option for “not one thin dime”? I hate being jerked around. I’m not rewarding them for it. I’ll watch it free the next weekend and follow the thread here. It’s not like I’ll never get to see it at all.
BoxAnne - January 17, 2012
I will take the weekend off and then go to a sports bar, so I’m going to be giving up somewhere around 200 dollars… Though if I could get a few people to pitch some bucks I’d watch it but I simply don’t think I have a big enough TV.
RyanSexton - January 17, 2012
It’s boxing. I’m gonna watch it regardless. I enjoy watching it on HD in my own house. So what they charge is what I’m paying. No questions asked.
Eugene Banks - January 18, 2012
Is there a price where you’d at least grumble to yourself that they’re really testing you?
Scott Christ - January 18, 2012
They already tested me with Mayweather-Ortiz HD. I rather they not test me any further. I’ll pay the $100 if they ask for it. Don’t mean i gotta like it.
Eugene Banks - January 18, 2012
Oh I’ll pay whatever, too. And agreed on the Floyd-Ortiz HD price.
Scott Christ - January 18, 2012
I hear it all the time.
“Don’t you think you waste to much money watching boxing?”
“Oh I know I do”
“Well what you gonna do about it?”
“Order the next fight”
Eugene Banks - January 18, 2012
Scott, can you claim PPV and cable costs as a work-related expense?
caligula. - January 18, 2012
+1
These guys all want to be paid huge money so that is what it will cost.
pakinpower - January 18, 2012
there's no way this ppv
break the record 2.5 mill noway.
but it will still be the undisputed revenue king. it could be a 200 mill dollar fight
Elstriko - January 18, 2012 via Android app
Yeah Oscar
Because it wasn’t greedy of you all to bump up the price of tickets and PPV. No sir…not at all. Temporary stadiums is just crossing the line from regular greed to CRAZY greed!
erod - January 18, 2012
I’ll probably go to the theatre. Some 15 bucks or 20 if they get greedy. I’d rather watch it at a bar though. But I will, more than likely, not pay the PPV prize.
Apprentice - January 18, 2012
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