Hayemaker Ringstar, the joint venture between two weight World Boxing Champion, David Haye and world renowned promoter Richard Schaefer, announce milestone TV rights deal with UKTV, the biggest multichannel broadcaster in the UK, for its entertainment channel Dave.
The three-year deal will see five fight nights broadcast free of charge per year and the partnership marks an important move for channel Dave to continue its sports offering and wide range of programming.
The channel first entered the market of live sport in January 2016, broadcasting David Haye’s highly anticipated comeback fight. The show broke network records peaking at over three million viewers, 461% up on slot and capturing 14% of the audience share, beating Channel 4 for the duration of the fight.
The exclusive deal looks to satisfy Britain and Ireland’s appetite for free-to-view boxing, ensuring fans can tune in to great boxing matches on regular basis. The upcoming clashes will showcase Hayemaker Ringstar’s latest signings which include; European and Commonwealth Games Champion and Olympic silver medallist Heavyweight Joe Joyce. Joyce will be getting to work quickly, with a sharp trajectory to World Titles. Commonwealth Games silver medallist, European bronze medallist and Olympian, Qais Ashfaq. Scotland’s double World Champion and European Champion, Willy Hutchinson. As well as Michael Venom Page, 10-time World Kickboxing Champion and the UK’s most exciting MMA fighter who produced Bellator’s ultimate knockout of 2016.
David Haye said: “I’ve personally enjoyed huge success with UKTV, smashing viewer records on previous live broadcasts. As a result, I am thrilled to announce a long-term partnership to introduce the next generation of boxing stars to their audience. An incredible 40 million people tune into UKTV’s programme offering every month which without question provides the Hayemaker Ringstar stable with an incredibly strong platform for a rapidly growing fan base.”
Richard Watsham, UKTV director of commissioning said: “David Haye’s excitement for his brilliant new line up of emerging stars is infectious. He’s signed some thrilling prospects and I know Dave’s audience will get behind them and support them as they build up towards leading their divisions. I frequently hear fans call for a bit of a shake up in the world of boxing; we’re proud to be part of that and to give so many people the chance to watch.”
Richard Schaefer said: “We’re delighted to be working alongside UKTV, taking the sport back to the masses where it belongs. I enjoy building prospects and champions into superstars that transcend the sport of boxing and become global household names, just like I have done with Floyd Mayweather, Canelo and many more”.
