NEW YORK (Nov. 9, 2007)—SHOWTIME is currently airing “Vargas vs. Mayorga: Countdown to The Brawl”— profiling two of boxing’s most colorful and explosive personalities. America’s No. 1 Boxing Network will feature the documentary program at various times over a two-week period between Friday, Nov. 9, and Friday, Nov. 23 (see next page for complete schedule). “Ferocious” Fernando Vargas and Ricardo “El Matador” Mayorga will meet in the ring the day after Thanksgiving to settle a personal score for machismo and pride..
The highly anticipated bout is scheduled for 12 rounds at a catch weight of 166 pounds and will be air live on Nov. 23 on pay-per-view (10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT) from STAPLES Center in Los Angeles.
“Countdown to The Brawl” takes viewers inside the training camps and into the homes of Vargas and Mayorga to reveal their motivation, strategies of intimidation and the root of their volatile and now infamous first fight. The bad blood started at the announcement press conference in Los Angeles on July 11.
In addition, in depth interviews with Vargas, Mayorga and members of their training camps uncover a never-before-seen duality in each. These former world champions always have been known for toughness, bravado and street mentality, but that is only half of their personality; half of their motivation. Countdown to The Brawl shows the people behind the boxers, and the tremendous impact they have had on these competitors—both in their formative years and today.
Vargas reflects on his childhood, growing up without his father and why it is important for him to be a good father to his children. “I am lucky I found boxing,” Vargas said. “I was going nowhere quickly. I wanted so much to belong to something. If I was asked to join a gang, I probably would have.”
Mayorga, on the other hand, is looking to re-claim his ring status and shed his disappointment after a personally devastating knockout loss to Oscar De La Hoya. “I need to fight somebody and beat him,” Mayorga said. “I am going to hit Vargas as hard as I can because I just want to let this out, to get this out of my system.”
Featuring expert analysts Al Bernstein and Steve Farhood, journalists Steve Kim and Doug Fischer and boxing historian Bert Sugar, “Countdown to The Brawl” breaks down how this fight got personal and why this match up will be, quite simply, a brawl.
VARGAS vs. MAYORGA: COUNTDOWN TO THE BRAWL
SHO Friday, Nov. 9 1:30 a.m.
SHO Saturday, Nov. 10 4 a.m.
SHO Saturday, Nov. 10 9:30 p.m.
SHO2 Monday, Nov. 12 10 p.m.
SHO Monday, Nov. 12 Midnight
SHO2 Wednesday, Nov. 14 10 p.m.
SHO Wednesday, Nov. 14 Midnight
SHO2 Friday, Nov. 16 10 p.m.
SHO Saturday, Nov. 17 9 p.m.
SHO2 Saturday, Nov. 17 2 a.m.
SHO2 Monday, Nov. 19 10 p.m.
SHO2 Tuesday, Nov. 20 10 p.m.
SHO Tuesday, Nov. 20 11 p.m.
SHO Wednesday, Nov. 21 4 a.m.
SHO2 Wednesday, Nov. 21 10 p.m.
SHO Thursday, Nov. 22 12:30 a.m.
SHO2 Friday, Nov. 23 10 p.m.
The Nov. 23 fight card at STAPLES Center is a joint promotion between Don King Productions and Main Events in association with AEG and STAPLES Center.
Tickets priced at $300, $150, $100 and $50 are on sale now online at www.ticketmaster.com, via TicketMaster charge-by-phone lines at (213) 480-3232 or (714) 740-2000, and at all TicketMaster ticket centers, including Macy’s West and Ritmo Latino locations. Tickets are also available at the STAPLES Center box office and the box office at TEAM LA at Universal CityWalk.
The event will also be televised live domestically beginning at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT, at a suggested retail price of $44.95, distributed by SHOWTIME® PPV.
The Sports & Entertainment Center of the World, STAPLES Center is the downtown Los Angeles home of the most popular concerts, special events and five professional sports franchises: The NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers; the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings; the AFL’s Los Angeles Avengers; and the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks as well as championship boxing, tennis, family shows and special events. Since its October 17, 1999, grand opening, STAPLES Center, twice named Arena of the Year, has welcomed over 25 million guests.
Main Events was founded in 1978 by Kathy Duva’s late husband Dan Duva. In addition to the hundreds of world title bouts it has promoted, Main Events has promoted some of the biggest PPV events in history, such as “Showdown” the 1981 undisputed welterweight unification bout between “Sugar” Ray Leonard and Thomas “The Hitman” Hearns; “The Battle of the Ages” 1991 undisputed heavyweight championship between Evander Holyfield and George Foreman; the “Miss Howard Stern New Year’s Eve” pageant, and the 2002 Lennox Lewis
Mike Tyson heavyweight showdown which at the time set the record for the highest grossing PPV event of all-time.
Don King Productions has promoted over 500 world championship fights with nearly 100 individual boxers having been paid $1 million or more. DKP also holds the distinction of having promoted or co-promoted seven of the 10 largest pay-per-view events in history, as gauged by total buys, including three of the top five: Holyfield vs. Tyson II, 1.99 million buys, June 1997; Tyson vs. Holyfield I, 1.6 million buys, November 1996; and Tyson vs. McNeeley, 1.58 million buys, August 1995.
DKP has promoted or co-promoted 11 of the top 15 highest-grossing live gates in the history of the state of Nevada including three of the top five: Holyfield vs. Lewis II, paid attendance: 17,078, gross: $16,860,300 (NOTE: Also second-highest live-gate gross for any event in history.), date: Nov. 13, 1999; Holyfield vs. Tyson II, paid attendance: 16,279, gross: $14,277,200, date: June 28, 1997; Holyfield vs. Tyson I, paid attendance: 16,103, gross: $14,150,700, date: Nov. 9, 1996; and Tyson vs. McNeeley, paid attendance: 16,113, gross: $13,965,600, date: Aug. 19, 1995.
Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, as well as the multiplex channels SHOWTIME® TOO™, SHOWTIME® SHOWCASE, SHOWTIME EXTREME®, SHOWTIME BEYOND®, SHOWTIME NEXT®, SHOWTIME WOMEN®, SHOWTIME FAMILYZONE® and TMC XTRA. SNI also offers SHOWTIME HD®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL HD™, SHOWTIME ON DEMAND™ and THE MOVIE CHANNEL ON DEMAND™. SNI is also an owner and manager of SUNDANCE CHANNEL, a venture of NBC Universal, Robert Redford and SNI. SNI also manages Smithsonian Networks, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution. All SNI feeds provide enhanced sound using Dolby Digital 5.1. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME® PPV.