HBO to End Boxing Promotion After Oct. 27 Event

HBO says it’s no longer in the boxing business after 45 years of promoting some of the biggest fights in the sport’s history, the network announced on Thursday.

Having put on over 1,000 fights, beginning with George Foreman’s knockout of Joe Louis in 1973, the network will discontinue its boxing promotion at the end of 2018. HBO has one final boxing broadcast scheduled for Oct. 27 at Madison Square Garden, which will feature a middleweight title fight.

In a statement sent to Sherdog, HBO detailed the difficult decision to sever ties with the Sweet Science:

“Boxing has been part of our heritage for decades. During that time, the sport has undergone a transformation. It is now widely available…