Promoter tells Parker: It’s in your hands now
Bob Arum may have given Joseph Parker a foot in the door to the lucrative American market through his co-promotional deal with Duco Events, but the Top Rank chief says he cannot transform the Kiwi into a global payper-view star.
That, according to the legendary promoter, is all up to Parker.
Having come together for Parker’s WBO heavyweight title showdown against Top Rank’s Andy Ruiz on Saturday, Duco directors David Higgins and Dean Lonergan have quickly seen the benefits of joining forces with Arum, who is regarded as one of the most influential figures in boxing.
In a career spanning more than 50 years, Arum has promoted some of the biggest names in the business, including Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Joe Frazier, Sugar Ray Leonard and Floyd Mayweather. He set up Top Rank in 1973 which currently has eight world champions on its books, headed by WBO welterweight king Manny Pacquiao.
The agreement will allow Parker and other Duco fighters, such as Australian welterweight Jeff Horn, to have better access to the US market and China.
It is not dependant on a Parker victory, although it goes without saying they have big plans for the 24-year-old in the near future.
‘‘Yes, of course, but no promoter can make a fighter a star. A fighter has to make himself a star,’’ Arum said.
‘‘A promoter can only help by getting the right fights, getting the right publicity but the idea that the promoter makes the star, as flattering as that is, is just not the case.’’
Arum, who turns 85 tomorrow, obviously has a high opinion of Parker but he insisted the deal with Duco was not an admission that Ruiz has no hope of winning on Saturday.
‘‘Listen, having been in this business 50-plus years, I don’t expect anybody to win a fight, particularly when it’s as close on paper as this one is,’’ he added.
‘‘I really think that the winner of this fight probably has the best chance to be the preeminent heavyweight, I really believe that.
‘‘Parker has natural skills, he’s so big and he punches so hard and Andy has the fastest hands that I’ve seen on a heavyweight since Muhammad Ali.’’
Under the arrangement, Arum will help negotiate the US television rights when Parker eventually fights in the States, with the companies sharing the American revenue.
Crucially for Duco, they still get to keep all of the New Zealand and Australian TV dollars.
So what began with Lonergan cold-calling Arum in a bold bid to set up Saturday’s title fight in Auckland has quickly blossomed into what fellow director David Higgins believes will be a fruitful relationship for both parties.
‘‘Bob actually suggested that there could be a win-win copromotion arrangement between Duco Events and Top Rank and we liked his style from the beginning,’’ Higgins said.
‘‘Bob is accessible and straightforward. We sat down with him in Beverly Hills and he spelt out a very simple arrangement that made perfect sense.’’
As well as the US market, Arum sees great opportunities in China, where he believes boxing is booming.
While not on pay-per-view, Arum says 90 million homes tuned in to watch Top Rank fighter Zou Shiming win the WBO flyweight title in November and he would like to pair him and Parker together on cards both in China and New Zealand.
‘‘That’s more than who watched the Super Bowl,’’ Arum said of Shiming’s numbers.
‘‘If Parker does defeat Andy Ruiz then we will together with Duco and perhaps have Parker fight in the United States then come back here and then fight in China.
‘‘Believe me, this just the start.’’