HBO to Drop Boxing Coverage at End of 2018; Had Covered Sport for 45 Years

HBO will no longer cover boxing after dropping its coverage of the sport at the end of 2018, according to Dan Rafael of ESPN.

The network helped create pay-per-view sporting events and has shown boxing matches for 45 years.

"Going forward in 2019, we will be pivoting away from programming live boxing on HBO," HBO Sports said in a statement. "As always, we will remain open to looking at events that fit our programming mix. This could include boxing, just not for the foreseeable future. We're deeply indebted to the many courageous fighters whose careers we were privileged to cover."

HBO began its boxing coverage in 1973 with George Foreman beating Joe Frazier for the heavyweight championship. Altogether, the network has covered 1,111 fights, featuring many of the top competitors in the history of the sport.

Floyd Mayweather, Mike Tyson, Oscar De La Hoya, Manny Pacquiao and many others have made at least 15 appearances on the network.

The last card currently on the schedule features two bouts on Oct. 27 in Madison Square Garden, including matches between Daniel Jacobs and Sergiy Derevyanchenko, plus Alberto Machado and Yuandale Evans.

Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin had contracts with HBO but will now have a chance to find new networks to host their fights.