A very surprising development from HBO this morning, as the network announced that Ken Hershman is leaving as president of HBO Sports. He’ll stay in his post until the end of the year.
Ken Hershman will step down as HBO Sports President at the end of the year. He’s run the division since 2012.
— John Ourand (@Ourand_SBJ) October 30, 2015
The news circulated quickly among the boxing press, which shouldn’t be a surprise given the prominent role HBO plays within that sport. Hershman came to HBO from Showtime, succeeding Ross Greenburg, where he ran that network’s sports division for 10 years. Yahoo! Sports Kevin Iole recalled that CBS president Les Moonves was so angered by Hershman going to HBO that he ordered Showtime to do whatever necessary to sign Floyd Mayweather away from its top rival. Sure enough, Mayweather signed a six-fight deal with Showtime that just expired a month ago.
As you might expect, Hershman believes he’s leaving HBO Sports in a good position, especially in establishing relationships with the fighters the network features. Here are remarks from an official press release (via Bad Left Hook):
“I am particularly proud of what I accomplished and believe now is the perfect time to hand over the reins to someone new. I’ve had the distinct privilege of having been involved in many of boxing’s biggest and most thrilling moments, including the Mike Tyson era, creating the Super Six Tournament, and, staging the biggest pay-per-view event of all-time this past May in Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao. I have also had the privilege to steward over some of the best sports shows on television, including 24/7, Real Sports and Hard Knocks, and to work with some of the best talent in television, both behind and in front of the camera.
“HBO Sports is well positioned for the future, especially in the boxing arena, with nine of the top 10 pound-for-pound fighters in the sport today, including the world heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, Canelo Alvarez, Gennady Golovkin, Sergey Kovalev, Miguel Cotto, Andre Ward, Terence Crawford and many others. I cannot wait to watch these great fighters exhibit their skills, but from the vantage point of a passionate boxing fan.”
Hershman did not give a reason for a resignation in his press release. He will work with network president Michael Lombardo during the transition to a successor at HBO Sports.
Some might be wondering how this could affect Bill Simmons, but Simmons dealt with Lombardo and network CEO Richard Plepler when making his move to HBO. However, Simmons was to work with Hershman on developing non-boxing shows and documentaries for HBO Sports. That is surely still part of his deal with the network.