Pacquiao, Mayweather Fights Spawn Promotions

Pacquiao vs Clottey
What would have been the biggest fight in recent years won't happen because its two principals -- the world's pound-for-pound best boxer Manny Pacquiao and unbeaten Floyd Mayweather -- couldn't agree on drug-testing procedures. But that failure has spun off two big fights that are generating record levels of marketing activity, including major sponsors and HBO's largest-ever promotion around a pay-per-view (PPV) fight.

In the first, on March 13, World Boxing Organization welterweight champ Pacquiao fights Joshua Clottey, the former titleholder from Ghana, in the new Cowboys Stadium, which seats some 80,000. The second pits Mayweather against Shane Mosley at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

The latter, "Who RU Picking?" -- a nod to the social-media effort HBO is putting behind the fight -- has Tecate doing a $3 million campaign that includes a $30 rebate for the PPV fight. Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer, speaking at the Tuesday press launch of the fight in New York, said DeWalt Power Tools is also activating.

The company is doing 450 events in over 2,000 Home Depot stores, per Schaefer, who adds that the effort includes a promotional offer: Buy a DeWalt power tool and get a full $55 rebate for the PPV of the fight. AT&T is doing a commercial push that includes a new TV spot and "huge activations across multiple platforms," said Schaefer. Golden Boy is promoting along with Mayweather Promotions.

In addition to making Mosley and Mayweather the stars of the eighth installment of "24/7" on April 10, HBO is doing its biggest campaign in HBO PPV history around the fight. The effort, with a "Who RU Picking?" theme, includes a social media promotion where viewers vote online for either Mosley or Mayweather.

For the second fight at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Tex., Tecate is doing a campaign that it had to put together on short notice, since the fight was developed shortly after the Pacquiao/Mayweather mega-fight fell through, per Carlos Boughton, brand director for Tecate. "It started as 'well, let's see what we can do,' as we got notice a bit later." Tecate and Top Rank are offering a $20 mail-in rebate coupon for the HBO PPV event with the purchase of a 12-pack or larger of Tecate or Tecate Light.

Boughton says efforts include point-of-purchase material at 9,000 grocery and convenience stores with promotional materials featuring images of Pacquiao and Clottey, as well as fight details. In addition, the cerveza brand will tailor its radio spots in the two weeks leading up to the event.

Boughton says a new Tecate ad campaign using the "Con Caracter" tagline hits in mid April with three new spots, one with a boxing theme and another with a soccer theme.

Tecate also will launch a western-regional grassroots promotion in select grocery stores where people can meet with fighters.

Source: mediapost.com