A new boxing promotion, led by the UFC’s owners at TKO Group Holdings, is gearing up for its inaugural event in September. The first card will feature a superfight between Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford in Las Vegas.
UFC CEO Dana White and WWE president Nick Khan are involved in the new boxing league, which is financially supported by Saudi Arabia and Turki Alalshikh, the chairman of the General Entertainment Authority in Saudi Arabia.
TKO president Mark Shapiro revealed plans for an average of 12 fights per year over the next five years, in addition to several “superfight” events like the one scheduled for September.
The new Saudi-backed boxing league is also planning multiple “superfight” events in addition to the regular fight cards.
Shapiro mentioned the possibility of one to four superfights per year, with the Canelo vs. Crawford matchup being one of them.
The broadcast partner for the TKO boxing league is yet to be announced, but details are expected to be finalized before the September launch.
While TKO is overseeing the operations, Saudi Arabia is providing all the financial backing for the promotion.
The individual fight cards will be separate from the “superfights” and will be funded by Saudi Arabia.
Shapiro explained that the superfights and regular fight cards are two separate entities with different business models.
TKO Boxing is just a placeholder name for the promotion, with a new name set to be revealed before the official launch.
Stay tuned for updates on the new boxing promotion as more details are released in the coming months.