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Casino Honour For Boxing Promoters

Posted By Grant Nelson | Thursday, May 29, 2008 - 11:00
Categories:
King is to join the Hall of Fame

Legendary boxing promoters Don King and Bob Arum are to be honoured by the casino industry.

Two of boxing's highest profile promoters are to be honoured for their contribution to the US casino industry at a charity dinner in September.

Don King and Bob Arum have both been included on this year's list of inductees into the American Gaming Association's Hall of Fame.

King's nomination is in recognition of the number of world title fights he has staged at casinos in Las Vegas and Atlantic City.

His casino promotions, some of which featured all-time greats such as Muhammad Ali, Larry Holmes, Roberto Duran, Sugar Ray Leonard and Evander Holyfield, generated huge sums in both ticket sales and television revenue.

King's use of casinos to host contests came after the strategy was pioneered by his rival Arum, who staged the first major boxing bill at a Nevada gaming complex - the 1978 world heavyweight title fight in which the novice Neon Leon Spinks defeated Ali.

The practice of using casino resorts as the venue for major fights continues to this day and Floyd Mayweather's victory over Oscar De La Hoya at the MGM Grand last year set a new Nevada record by generating ticket sales of $18.4 million.ADNFCR-1691-ID-18613728-ADNFCR

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