DraftKings and Showtime have teamed up, they jointly announced last week, to run an exciting new, boxing Pick ‘Em-style game.
It is to be launched this coming Saturday when Erislandy Lara fights Brian Castano at the Barclay Centre in Brooklyn.
DraftKings is one the giants of New Jersey sports betting and of biggest of the USA’s Daily Fantasy sports operators.
Showtime is a professional boxing market leader, especially in the digital sector. It was the first US boxing broadcaster to feature social media posts during fights. Furthermore, it has long streamed portions of its undercards on YouTube and Facebook.
To play the game with DraftKings, you will have to make choices on four different aspects of a fight.
You’ll need to select the winner and the winner’s manner of victory. You’ll also have to name the round when the fight ends and the total number of punches landed.
The new game will include televised fights from ‘Showtime Championship Boxing’. There will also be some from ‘ShoBox – the Next Generation’, ‘Showtime Boxing’s special edition’ and Showtime Pay-per-view events.
Players will compete for money prizes and free trips
Players will compete against each other for points based on the number of correct predictions they make per fight.
Furthermore, each card, like Saturday’s Lara-Castano confrontation, will offer $5,000 in potential winnings. There will also be boxing prize packs for the top five finishers in each contest – and there’s more.
The 2019 Pick ‘Em overall winner of the year will be awarded free travel and entry to every Showtime Championship event in 2020.
“This unique collaboration with DraftKings delivers an entertaining companion experience for viewers,” Showtime Sports president Stephen Espinoza said. “It will provide a year-long connection to all Showtime boxing events.”
“We’re excited to align with a leading sports-tech entertainment brand in the US. It’ll enable us to deliver fresh and innovative ways for fans to enjoy the best that boxing has to offer.”
Ezra Kucharz, the chief business officer at DraftKings, was equally pleased with his company’s link-up with Showtime.
“Our alignment with Showtime is another prime example of our endless efforts to innovate and satisfy our customers,” he said.
“Boxing draws edge-of-the-seat fans with incredible passion and engagement with the sport. This collaboration will further our ability to best connect with our burgeoning player community.”
Showtime is still finalizing its 2019 schedule, but the next fight you can bank on is a big one. In the eyes of some, it could well prove to be the biggest ever in female boxing history.
It will be between multi-titled Claressa Shields, a two-time Olympic champion (8-0, 2 KOs) and seasoned Christina Hammer (24-0, 11 KOs). They are set to slug it out in Atlantic City next month for the undisputed middleweight championship of the world.
Shields is the holder of the IBF, WBA and WBC middleweight belts and Hammer, the WBO titleholder. The winner in Atlantic City on April 13 will become only the second women ever to hold all four middleweight titles simultaneously.
If you’ve been thinking about getting into sports betting and boxing sports betting especially, here’s an easy avenue. The picks you’ll have to make will help you build your boxing knowledge and betting skills. Also, you’ll be making them without having to lay down money on each and every pick you make.
What’s more, you’ll have a chance to start making some money and winning prizes. If you are really good at this new Kick-Em game you could also see a lot of fights on the house.
