Katie Taylor v. Amanda Serrano

I thought you were into boxing? The away fighter especially a challenger always has to do a bit more to win on points.

You're spot on here, people underestimate how much Irish people are event junkies.

I've said it in the past that Katie would sell out Croke Park easier than The Point. Now I no longer believe that to be true, I think there's enough genuine support for her to sell out the 9,300 seater Point these days without the major bandwagon, particularly if a few other popular Irish fighters are on the card.

However we are complete event junkies.

The Garth Brooks concerts (both times around prooves that). Yes he's a popular artist, but the majority of people who went to those concerts probably didn't even listen to one of his songs in the 12 months leading into those concerts, other than just before it. But get the bandwagon going and he's the "it" event for 2022.

Katie could easily have been the "it" event for 2023 and I don't think Hearn fully realised that Irish bandwagon mentality.

He's afraid it wouldn't sell well, so he wasn't willing to take the gamble on it, and I bet he won't take the gamble later in the year either !

In defence of Hearn (I feel dirty just saying that), I think that fee for Wembley may include their porous security.

Were as the Croke Park one doesn't and the costs for that are meant to be substantial. It's also the weekend for the European Champions/Challenge Cup finals (which is why they can't use Landsdowne), but that means a lot of gardai will already be required for that. So we're talking about a huge amount of overtime for Gardai and additional security compared to a normal weekend and perhaps it would cost an additional €500,000 to host.

So perhaps neither party has been lying.

You engaged me, lad, talking absolute pony.

You said Serrano will have to do a good bit better to win. I challenged that, and now you have your knickers in a twist.

Nothing to do with being contrarian. You simply spouted gick, and I corrected this. Like on other threads with you!

It's simple: plenty plenty examples where away boxers get the nod in close fought fights against the hometown fighter. It’s your issue that you cannot grasp this, not mine. Maybe it's the whole "you have to really beat the champion to take his/her belt" that has you all confused. This saying is nothing but a saying, and has no actual verifiable substance or merit.

As popular as she is, she wouldnt come close to sell out Crocker unless the price point were a lot lower than most big boxing matches.

The point made earlier on the cost of security is well made. Could easily be close to a million for venue and security.

Wouldn't be enough money in it for Hearn or for that matter Katie despite the narrative

We’re a funny little country at times!!

That’s not the case

Croke Park actually signed a short-form contract and all initially for that amount, then went silent for a few weeks. Then came back and upped their price drastically to which Hearn said to F off (correctly so)

Croke Park wouldn’t come near selling out by the way. Too many mammies and armchair fans etc that love Katie Taylor but wouldn’t go to Croke Park for a fight of hers, which is understandable

Hearn understood perfectly. Absolutely perfectly.

He very quickly saw that the Heineken Cup final would clash with the date he had given the TV companies, so now he gets a warmup in The Point Depot in May and a full boxing card in Croke Park on the first or second Saturday in September.

And he's also got everyone talking about both. For free.

Hearn doesn't say his prayers without a wider motive and thats why he's the boss of Matchroom and worth north of 50 million quid personally.

They came back with a quote from the Guards, to police the first professional card in Ireland since the Regency gun attack, where boxing in Ireland attracts a following of scum and villainy.

And not just any card, a gate of 80,000 in the heart of the Dublin gangland district.

If that adds up to a prohibitive cost for Hearn, it sounds like the Point is really his best bet.

He inherited most of that from the aul lad.

A nepo baby as the current idiom has it.

How do you know the price is ridiculous, have you tried to rent Cork park yourself to host a large event?

It was partly built using tax payers money as was every single large sporting facility in this country.

Why is the price ridiculous, if Hearn wants to use the stadium for a "national sporting hero" he's just pay the money and have the fight there.

The fact that you've started using ridiculous emotive language over this situation show you than Hearns strategy for promoting the fight is working as he has enough gullible dopes in this country that believe him and create a **** storm of outrage and this promote the fight for him.

It’s Croke Park are BSing here

Initially they signed a short-form contracts agreeing on the €400k (matching the Wembley amount) with Hearn covering all costs associated with things himself

Croke Park then went quiet for a few weeks and came back quoting over €200k more on the original amount

For what it’s worth, Croke Park won’t sell out for Katie anyway. Too many Mammies/Social Media followers who wouldn’t do the trip. 3 Arena makes sense

You're 100% right with the above, although there is another angle I hadn't thought of.

TV/streaming numbers are obviously a huge part of what brings in the money for big fights and fighters. The image and perception of a fighter has a lot to do with that aswell.

So let's imagine Hearn put this on in Croke Park and it does 45-50,000 people. Now financially that'd still be a big success in terms of profit from ticket sales, despite security costs.

However it would ruin the imagine of Taylor as a megastar in Ireland who everyone wants to watch if there 30,000+ empty seats in the stadium. That could have a knock on effects in terms of the ability to sell her to US audiences.

This is the biggest star in women's boxing (alongside Claressa Shields) and if she couldn't even sell out a mega fight in her home country it could have further knock on effects to the image of women's boxing, which Matchroom are promoting heavily.

From that point of view I could see Hearn's hesitancy to take the risk on Croke Park.