ESPN, DAZN or Showtime? Which is best for Gennady ‘GGG’ Golovkin?

GGG has offers from ESPN, DAZN and Showtime, but which is best for his career?

It’s not too often that a big name fighter is a “free agent” in boxing. Most of the big stars are relatively loyal to their network/promoter, and with the exception of Floyd Mayweather jumping from HBO to Showtime and Canelo Alvarez jumping from Showtime to HBO, there have not been many big named network changes in recent years.

However, when HBO announced that it will no longer be a part of boxing going forward, many boxers, including Canelo Alvarez and Gennady ‘GGG’ Golovkin, were left without a network/platform to fight on.

Canelo already announced that he accepted a record-breaking $365 million deal from DAZN, but GGG has not yet decided which network he will join. With offers from ESPN, DAZN and Showtime/Fox (PBC), the ball is in GGG’s court, and he has to make a decision based on what he wants at this point in his career.

The case for ESPN

The biggest case for GGG going to ESPN would be the exposure. Nearly every household in America has access to ESPN, and there will undoubtedly be more eyes on a Golovkin fight that is aired on ESPN than there would be if he were on either DAZN or Showtime.  It would definitely help build his brand and increase his popularity, but at 36 years old, the time to increase his name recognition with the masses may be behind him.

While fighting for a large audience is definitely enticing, ESPN does not have that great of a roster at middleweight, and ending your career fighting subpar opposition will not excite the boxing fans who have been following his career for years.

GGG is still very much an elite fighter, as he is number six on our latest pound for pound list, and is not quite at the stage in his career where he has to take a step down in level of opposition if he wants to win.

However, if Golovkin is at a point where he simply cares more about his popularity and making money instead of fighting the elite of the division, then ESPN is the best choice for that. The network will do an excellent job marketing him, and he will get good views no matter who he fights.

The case for DAZN

Simply put, DAZN can offer GGG bigger fights than ESPN and PBC. If Golovkin is still in the sport for his legacy, then it appears that DAZN would be his best choice. There is the obvious trilogy with Canelo that would be on the table, as well as a rematch with Daniel Jacobs and even a fight with Demetrius Andrade that would all be very interesting to boxing fans.

More from Boxing

• Limited-Time FanDuel Boxing Promo: $200 Bonus for ANY Bet on Baumgardner vs Linardatou
• Rays vs. Diamondbacks prediction and odds for Thursday, June 29 (Take the OVER)
• DraftKings Boxing Promo GUARANTEES $200 on Lopez vs Taylor (Plus, Win an Extra $200+ in Five States!)
• Industry’s BIGGEST Boxing Promo Unlocks $2,500 Bonus Betting on Lopez vs Taylor at FanDuel
• Turn $5 Into $200 Betting on Claressa Shields With DraftKings Boxing Promo (-8000 Odds Usually Pays out 6 Cents!) 

In addition to the fighters at middleweight, DAZN can offer GGG a fight with Callum Smith, who won the WBSS Super Middleweight tournament. Although not undisputed champion, Smith is viewed as number one in the division, and if GGG were to move up and challenge him, it would garner a lot of interest as Golovkin has never fought above middleweight during his professional career.

GGG is not the same fighter he was six years ago, but he is still as good if not better than every other middleweight in the world. He would likely be the favorite against anyone, with the exception of maybe Canelo, and if he cares about how he will be remembered in the sport, beating the likes of Jacobs, Andrade or even Callum Smith this late in his career would bolster his legacy.

The case for Fox/Showtime

Most thought the GGG sweepstakes was a two-man race between ESPN and DAZN, but speculation of PBC making an offer to Golovkin arose when he was shown on Showtime’s PPV broadcast of Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury this past Saturday.

Then, on Monday, Mike Coppinger reported that a PBC official had met with GGG and they had discussed GGG joining PBC.

If Golovkin were to join Al Haymon’s stable, it would give him the opportunity to fight either on Showtime or on Fox. This is sort of a best of both worlds scenario, where he can have the exposure of fighting on Fox but still have some big fights, like a matchup with Jermall Charlo that would be a Showtime PPV event, and would bring in a lot of money for both fighters.

While PBC does not have quite as many big-name middleweights as DAZN, it has enough to ensure Golovkin would still be involved in some highly anticipated matchups, while still getting viewed by more fans if his fights were put on Fox.

Conclusion

Before I give my opinion on where I believe Golovkin should go, let me say that I am assuming the offers in terms of pure dllars will be all within range of each other. With that in mind, if I were Golovkin, I would go with DAZN.

Joining PBC could be a good move, as he could potentially fight on Fox and enjoy a larger audience than DAZN, while still being involved in at least a couple of matchups against big-name fighters. But outside of the previously mentioned fight with Charlo (which would be great), and maybe Jarrett Hurd if he moved up in weight, there aren’t as many big fights for GGG with PBC.

If time were on GGG’s side, a contract with ESPN would have made a ton of sense: Build your brand and gain even more popularity before cashing out and going after the big fights. But at 36, his best days are behind him, and while he is certainly not washed up, he is not in his prime. The time for brand-building has passed, and the only way I would recommend a move to ESPN would be if he simply does not want to fight at the top level anymore, only cares about how many people will watch him fight, and wants to make some more money before retiring.

DAZN has the deepest roster of fighters for Golovkin to face, and it has something the other two sides simply do not: Canelo Alvarez. Despite reports saying Golovkin does not care about fighting Canelo for a third time, that opinion is likely to change when he thinks about how large his payday would be. As well as the money being right, the chance at getting revenge over someone he publicly dislikes has to be in the back of his head, despite him saying otherwise.

In addition, while some may be skeptical of Golovkin going to a streaming service, DAZN is without question a must-buy for boxing fans. It already has the WBSS and a very deep roster including Anthony Joshua and Canelo, so it appears as though more and more fans will be subscribing to the service.

In the end, though, it’s worth pointing out that Golovkin really can not make a wrong choice. Each network/platform has its own unique benefit, and it is simply up to GGG to decide what he wants.

Is he happy with his legacy and simply content to fight for as large an audience as possible? Then ESPN is his best bet.

If he wants to bolster his legac, and put an end to his rivalry with Canelo Alvarez, then DAZN should be his choice.

And if he is looking for some sort of middle ground, where he has a larger audience than DAZN but would be fighting better opponents than he would on ESPN, joining PBC appears to be the way to go.

Regardless of where he is fighting, boxing fans will tune in to watch one of the most exciting fighters of this generation.