On October 12, 2024, the whole world watched in awe as Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev produced a match-of-the-year candidate. Two athletes on top of their game produced a magical fight that will remain in everyone’s memory forever. In a controversial ending that left many screaming “robbery”, Artur Beterbiev emerged victor via a majority decision and became the first undisputed light heavyweight champion of the four-belt era. While the whole world watched these two clash, it looks like the undercard was starved of views, at least in the US.

According to a report shared by Brunch Boxing, the undercard of the Beterbiev-Bivol PPV produced disappointing numbers for DAZN, the primary broadcaster of the event. The pay-per-view buys generated by the undercard, especially in the US are shocking and the reason might have been the confused marketing decision of the people who put together the Beterbiev-Bivol event.

Disastrous marketing move for Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol undercard

The pay-per-view numbers for the undercard, which was solely broadcast by DAZN PPV, and was headlined by a short-lived but intense rematch between Fabio Wardley and Frazer Clarke, included several intense matchups. Despite this, according to a report published by Mathew Brown for Brunch Boxing, the undercard generated less than 1000 pay-per-view buys in the US. While the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol fight was offered for free to ESPN+ subscribers in the US, DAZN PPV streamed the undercard as a separate PPV at $19.99. This move sparked confusion and anger amongst the fans and might have eventually resulted in these shocking numbers according to Brown.

Initially, DAZN had promised the fans that the undercard would not require a separate pay-per-view fee since they would have to compete with ESPN+ which was offering it to their viewers for free. But the company reversed the decision at the last moment and raised the pay-per-view price to $19.99, which received a major backlash from fans all across the globe. It might be DAZN’s way of compensating for the loss of such a major main event, but the boxing community was not at all happy.

This last-minute change from $14.99 raised questions about the company’s transparency to the viewers and subscribers. The lack of an appealing undercard also played a huge part considering there were no North American fighters on the card. This limited the exposure the pay-per-view got in the US. Although Brown, in his report, has not revealed the source of the pay-per-view buy numbers, the lack of official numbers from DAZN does paint a suspicious portrait of less-than-satisfactory buys.

Earlier, the undercard was supposed to be headlined by Shakur Stevenson in his second WBC lightweight title defense. However, a hand injury forced him to pull out at the last moment. Despite having some stars who were not very popular in the US, the undercard had some exceptional fights.

A dazzling show despite a lack of views

Fabio Wardley and Frazer Clarke headlined the undercard as the duo had their rematch for Wardley’s British, Commonwealth, and WBA Continental heavyweight title. While the first fight between the duo was a split draw, Wardley ended things quickly in their rematch. The fight ended in a first-round KO win for an Ipswich native after continuous hooks to Clarke’s head forced the referee to stop the fight.

Chris Eubank Jr. made a statement with his return as he dropped Kamil Szeremeta four times in total to earn a stoppage win. After the match, he was confronted by Conor Benn inside the ring with Neymar Jr. acting as a mediator.

In another spectacular fight, Jai Opetaia retained his IBF cruiserweight title after Jack Massey’s corner threw in the towel in the sixth round. Other matches also provided some brilliant action as Skye Nicolson, Ben Whittaker, and Mohammad Alakel emerged victorious in their respective fights.

While the undercard provided excitement and over-delivered massively, the shocking marketing strategy by DAZN may have hurt the pay-per-view buys in the US. It would have been a much better sale if DAZN had adjusted the price to a slightly lower number. Whether the same is the case for their global pay-per-view numbers remains to be seen.

What do you think about the disappointing numbers of Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol undercard? Do you think DAZN should have handled the streaming better and provided it for free as initially promised? Let us know your thoughts down below.