For those that haven’t been paying attention, with the apparent loss of K-1, It’s Showtime has been making a strong play to become THE home for elite level Kickboxing. It’s Showtime has always been a player in the European kickboxing scene but this year has finally made the jump from European Promotion to World Leader for those seeking the best in kickboxing.

As this site and Liverkick.com have reported in the past, the major hurdle the promotion has faced to gaining a foothold in the United States has been the lack of a television deal. Fans have been forced to pay for streams on It’s Showtime’s website, which are often plagued with buffering issues and general video lag. They have recently signed a deal to air events on Canada’s Fight Network and it appears they are close to a deal to air events in the United States as well. Simon Rutz, the owner and promoter of the promotion announced on Facebook via status update the following:

We are in the last stadium to sign a contract with a big tv station in the USA. Soon more information about this! Meaby our first event on May 14 th is already on tv in the USA!

Now, the obvious choice would be HDNet, who have lost a large chunk of programming with Sengoku all but closing shop, and the future of K-1 not yet being determined. A deal with HDNet would be mutually beneficial for both companies as the production value of HDNet would work well with It’s Showtime’s events and It’s Showtime having a strong broadcast partner who has a history of working and promoting live events.

I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that G4 is the potential partner, as they were in negotiations with Bellator before they chose to sign a deal with MTV2. G4 caters to the video game crowd but has been trying to expand their programming schedule to include a wider array of shows. With the channel available in most HD packages, it would be a nice home for It’s Showtime as it has a larger reach than HDNet.

The most telling though is that Rutz says the deal could be done in time to air the May 14th event from Lyon, a card that features a returning Badr Hari, Tyrone Spong, Daniel Ghita, and Giorgio Petrosyan. This is by far the best kickboxing card of 2011 and would be quite the event to air if It’s Showtime wants to make an impact in the American television market. Look for an announcement within the next couple of days as the card is only 20 days away.

Source: Head Kick Legend
by Matthew Roth on Apr 25, 2011 8:58 PM EDT