World Boxing News has learned that the heavyweight title clash between Tyson Fury and Dillian Whyte will be on Pay Per View on both sides of the Atlantic.
Fury and Whyte became the subject of a spike in traffic and interest on Friday when promoters Frank Warren and Top Rank laid out a massive purse to secure the fight.
A mammoth bid of over $40 million at the WBC auction saw Fury vs. Whyte smash records as the most expensive purse bid title bout of all time.
As per the World Boxing Council rules, Fury gets 80% once ten percent gets taken for a winner bonus. He now pockets almost $30 million for his trouble.
Whyte will get just over $7 million when the check clears. Both men have expenses to come out of their hefty purses.
Despite initially eyeing Manchester Arena on March 26 for the clash, Warren and US counterpart Bob Arum will undoubtedly be looking at stadiums across the UK.
They need to sell between 70,000 and 100,000 tickets to make a dent in the considerable investment. That’s where the paid platform also comes in for Fury vs. Whyte.
Fans in the UK can expect to pay £24.95 on BT Sport Box Office – at the very least. As expected, BT Sport cannot wait.
They said: “The time for talking is over! After years of back and forth, the heavyweight showdown is on!”
But it’s not out of the realm of possibility that the show will cost another record-breaking £29.95 to enhance the retake.
Although that’s unconfirmed at this stage, American subscribers are used to paying at least $70 for significant PPV over the past year.
PAY PER VIEW PRICE
In October, Fury vs. Deontay Wilder III retailed at $79.99 on FOX and ESPN in a joint Pay Per View venture. Only ESPN holds the right to show Fury vs. Whyte this time around.
Therefore, they could up the price if they so wished. However, due to the collision being two Brits, Arum, Warren and ESPN might want to consider levelling off the cost to American consumers.
US fans might not take too kindly to having to fork out eighty bucks when an American isn’t involved. However, nothing is confirmed, and there’s no price mark on the event yet.
One, this is for sure, and that’s the fact Tyson Fury is the big winner here. He will clear a huge chunk of cash no matter what goes down on fight night.
‘The Gypsy King’ has come a long way from the days of ballooning in weight and suffering from mental and addiction problems.
Returning in 2018 was the best decision he ever made, and not a bad one financially either.
Phil Jay – Editor of World Boxing News since 2010 with over one billion views. Follow WBN on Twitter @WorldBoxingNews.
