Malignaggi: Promoters Will Look For Any Reason To Underpay Fighters

Paulie Malignaggi completely understands the psychological impact boxing before very few people will have on fighters that feed off crowds.

The retired two-division champion remembers how important fans were to him on fight night – whether they cheered or booed him. That’s why the Showtime analyst acknowledges how eliminating fans will worsen atmospheres in a post-pandemic boxing world.

In most cases, however, Malignaggi doesn’t think removing live gates from promoters’ revenue streams should have a dramatic impact on boxers’ purses once fights can be made again. That won’t stop promoters, according to Malignaggi, from overselling the effect a lack of ticket revenue will have on their bottom lines while negotiating purses.

“I’m for a capitalist world, but this is a complaint I have about it – I do think in a capitalist world promoters will look for any reason to underpay you,” Malignaggi told BoxingScene.com. “That’s how my experience has been. They’ll use an excuse of having no gate, even though a lot of times the promoter forgoes the gate and that’s why they don’t try to sell tickets, because it’s part of the deal. A lot of times the promoter was not getting the gate anyway. But any reason to underpay fighters will be taken advantage of.

“So, I think it may affect the fighters a little bit. But the TV money is the bulk of the support. The fight packages TV networks give to stage fights and put fights on is most important. But will these TV networks find the fights as exciting with no crowd? Will they be willing to pay as much money? I hope so.”

License fees from television networks and streaming services typically pay promoters and boxers more than they make from ticket sales. As long as that trend continues, Malignaggi can’t see any reason why boxers should be willing to accept significantly less money once they return from this extensive COVID-19 break.

Showtime will start televising live boxing again in July, though the network has not yet announced dates and specific fights.

“I remember when I was waiting for my offers for certain fights,” Malignaggi said, “the main thing you were looking for, under the [Muhammad] Ali Act, was what package the TV network offered your promoter, so that you could look at what your purse could be or wind up at. I think that still comes out as the most important piece to the puzzle for fighters’ purses, the package the TV network is giving. So, as long as TV networks are paying these types of packages, I think fighters should be paid pretty much the same, if not the same. Because you say, ‘OK, you’re not gonna have a gate. But your TV ratings should be higher because nobody’s going out.’

“I mean, you look at the way business is going now, things like Netflix, their stocks are going up. They’re making a lot of money. Amazon is making more money right now because everybody’s home ordering movies and ordering whatever. By the same token, if you have no crowds allowed at these fights, I do think the TV networks are gonna get higher ratings for these fights than they used to. In that regard, there still is money there to be paid. … The TV packages are what’s most important, and the TV packages should still be there because the ratings will be there.” 

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.