Marv Albert is heading back to NBC to call boxing for the network. Albert had two separate stints with NBC, the first serving several roles including a local anchor for WNBC-TV, calling boxing, college basketball, NBA and the NFL, and hosting MLB and horse racing for NBC Sports.
After the scandal that led to his downfall, he eventually returned to the Peacock to call the final years of the NBA on NBC.
Then Albert went to TNT to call the NBA and later joined CBS to call the NFL and the NCAA Tournament when Turner Sports became co-rightsholder for that event.
Of course, Marv has called games in the New York area either as the voice of the New York Football Giants on radio, New York Knicks and Rangers, New Jersey Nets as well as Monday Night Football for Westwood One Radio.
NBC has announced its bringing Marv back to call its Premier Boxing Champions series which begins in primetime on March 7. He’ll be teamed with 1976 Olympics gold medalist and former Welterweight Champion Sugar Ray Leonard.
Albert will continue to call the NBA on TNT as well as the NCAA Tournament for CBS/Turner.
NBC previously announced that Al Michaels will be the host of the March 7 debut so it means that Marv and Al will work together for the first time on network television.
Here’s the announcement.
MARV ALBERT TO SERVE AS BLOW-BY-BLOW ANNOUNCER FOR PREMIER BOXING CHAMPIONS ON NBC
Albert to Call “PBC on NBC” Debut Show, Saturday, March 7, Live in Primetime on NBC
Albert & “Sugar” Ray Leonard to Partner on All NBC ShowsSTAMFORD, Conn. – Feb. 9, 2015 – One of America’s legendary broadcast voices, Marv Albert, will serve as blow-by-blow announcer for Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) on NBC, it was announced today. Albert will be joined by analyst “Sugar” Ray Leonard for the debut of PBC on NBC in primetime Saturday, March 7 at 8:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Al Michaels will host.
Albert will team with six-time world champion and 1976 Olympic gold medalist Leonard on all 11 of the 2015 NBC broadcasts of the Premier Boxing Champions. He previously called boxing on NBC from 1980-2003, including three Summer Olympics highlighted by the controversial 1988 bouts in Seoul, South Korea. Albert also serves as the lead NBA voice and an NCAA basketball announcer for Turner Sports.
Albert’s debut PBC on NBC boxing show on NBC features a pair of blockbuster bouts — Keith Thurman vs. Robert Guerrero, and Adrien Broner vs. John Molina Jr. — live from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
“I’m so thrilled to be part of boxing’s primetime return to NBC, where I’ve had the good fortune to have been ringside for the call of so many exciting moments,” Albert said.
“Marv’s expertise and big-event voice make him the ideal choice to call boxing’s return to primetime broadcast television,” said Sam Flood, Executive Producer, NBC Sports and NBCSN. “Through the years, Marv has had many memorable boxing calls, and will now add his passion to the PBC on NBC.”
Additional announcers for NBC Sports Group’s PBC on NBC will be named in the coming weeks.
The March 7 primetime debut of the PBC on NBC is the first major boxing match on NBC in primetime since Monday, May 20, 1985. That telecast was previewed in the Los Angeles Times by Larry Stewart as follows:
“NBC is treating Monday night’s fight between Larry Holmes and Carl (The Truth) Williams in Reno as a major event. The network is bringing in its top production people to work the fight, and tons of equipment. Executive producer Mike Weisman will be on hand to oversee the production. Dick Enberg will be the telecast host, with Marv Albert and Ferdie Pacheco calling the action. NBC will superimpose a clock in the lower right corner of the screen that will go from zero to 3 minutes instead of starting at 3 minutes and counting down. Fight coverage will begin at 6 p.m. Monday, with Marvis Frazier facing James (Quick) Tillis in a scheduled 10-round preliminary.”
Albert previously worked at NBC Sports for more than 20 years, serving as the primary play-by-play announcer for the NBA on NBC, and he called the action on properties including the NFL, NHL, MLB, college basketball, boxing, and horse racing.
A multiple Emmy Award winner, Albert handled play-by-play duties for New Jersey Nets basketball on the YES Network from 2005-11, following more than three decades calling New York Knicks and New York Rangers games on Madison Square Garden Network. Albert got his start in sports broadcasting as the radio voice of the New York Giants football on WNEW-AM, and served as the sports anchor for WNBC (1975-87).
Beginning with the first show, Saturday, March 7, at 8:30 p.m. ET on NBC, NBC and NBCSN will present 20 live “PBC on NBC” boxing events in 2015. Within the 20 live shows, NBC Sports Group will present more than 50 hours of PBC coverage, including NBCSN pre- and post-fight programming for NBC telecasts. The Premier Boxing Champions series is created for television by Haymon Boxing. The PBC on NBC will feature many of today’s brightest stars, in their most compelling matches.
All PBC on NBC shows will be streamed live on NBC Sports Live Extra via “TV Everywhere,” giving consumers additional value for their subscription service, and making high quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms. NBC Sports Live Extra is available for desktops at NBCSports.com/liveextra. The NBC Sports Live Extra app is available at the App Store for iPad and iPod touch, on select devices within Google Play, and on windows phones and tablets.
If you’ve never seen Marv call boxing, we have two instances from the 1980’s. Here’s a fight that appeared on NBC SportsWorld in 1983 between Bobby Chacon and Cornelius Boza-Edwards. Marv’s partner was “The Fight Doctor” Ferdie Pacheco and they formed one of the stronger announcing teams on any sport in the 1980’s. They had very good chemistry.
And from the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, Republic of Korea, the controversial ending of the Roy Jones, Jr.-Park Si-Hun fight that typified the craziness of the boxing venue that year.
Good to see Marv back on boxing. This will be fun to have him back on the sport.
