Schwarzenegger and Stallone pictured during their previous visit to Macau
Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger are two of the celebrities returning to town to attend Sunday’s Pacquiao–Algieri fight at the Venetian Cotai Arena. As the Times predicted last week, both movie stars are on the list of fight attendees, Sands China corporate vice-president Scott J. Messinger confirmed in an exclusive interview.
“Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone, and I paraphrase from Arnie himself, he ‘will be back.’ He will be here, Sly will be here, Sly’s brother Frank Stallone is going to be joining us. Again, much like we had last year [at the Clash in Cotai event], you will see an unbelievable array of Western stars, Asian stars, from music, motion pictures, TV.”
The blockbuster film’s iconic lead actors are returning to Macau after August’s visit, when they participated in the The Expendables 3 VIP screening and attended the Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) event, both included in The Venetian’s 7th anniversary celebration.
According to Mr Messinger, the planning and preparation for the Clash in Cotai II has been going on for months, “almost akin to one of our property openings.” Interviewed by the Times, he said that the planning stage “requires a cross-departmental group ranging from operations, public relations, marketing, advertising, conventions and exhibitions group, hotel operations, arena staff… So it’s a very large group that comes together to [pull] something like this off because at Sands China we are committed to bringing the world’s best entertainment to our fellow citizens here in Macau and also to our visitors.”
Other celebrities in attendance at the Cotai Arena include Bruce Lee’s daughter Shannon Lee, the MMA star Cung Lee, actor Stephen Baldwin, former Pussycat Dolls star Melody Thornton and US rapper Ja Rule. At Manny Pacquiao’s request, Season 11 “American Idol” runner-up Jessica Sanchez will sing the Philippine national anthem before the fight.
“And more and more names are being hinted at everyday (…) Hong Kong and Macau tend to be late ticket-buying markets and people are now waking up to the fact that this is going to be another runaway success,” Mr Messinger said, adding that he expects “another sell-out crowd” at the Cotai Arena.
“We seek to engage with the best possible partners to do this and in the world of boxing there’s no one better than Top Rank. In all my conversations with Bob Arum, he is the first to say that is not simply about boxing, it’s also about entertainment, so we are very determined to giving a total package and program people can’t experience anywhere else. Sure, it’s possible to watch it on TV, but there’s nothing like watching it live and in person,” Sands China’s corporate vice-president stated.
Asked whether the celebrities coming to town this weekend will participate in activities included in the fight week, he said that, “it’s too early to disclose things before we have everything finalized, but the celebrities obviously will be supporting the fight on social media and various things. We are also going to try to have them attend many of our events.”
The fact that the bout will be produced and distributed live in the United States by HBO Pay-Per-View is one of the factors attracting celebrities, the top executive acknowledges. More than the airtime, however, they are drawn to a certain type of event, he says: “They [celebs] want to be associated with world class events that are going to generate a lot of interest and notoriety. But it’s not just anything, I can claim that something is going to be broadcast and… [they will not be interested in it]. It’s the type of event and the association with folks like Top Rank and Bob Arum. His reputation in the business is such that people want to be associated with that event and frankly the ethos of Sands China is that we don’t do things halfway. If Sands China is going to do an event we do it all the way.”
Sands China’s corporate vice-president Scott J. Messinger
Mr Messinger draws a parallel with the glamour of boxing events in Las Vegas: “Last year people asked if we are competing with Las Vegas for boxing. There are great sporting events done there, but we are bringing here our own take on the glitz, the glamour and the excitement that surrounds big time world title boxing events. That includes the big time entertainers that go along with it. The celebrities want to be there to see and be seen. What sets it apart here are our fans. We have to continuously open doors earlier and earlier for each of our events, because unlike in the US, where the crowd only starts getting there when the main events start, you know, the last four fights, our fans are here right from doors, they want to be here for all nine fights. We are now thinking of ways to provide them with a little bit of entertainment in the hour and a half run up to when the fights start.” Not even the fact that the event kicks off early in the morning (the doors are expected to open 5am) – due to the fact that it is being broadcast live to the US – deters fans.
“It [the early morning fights] certainly wasn’t an issue for Clash [in Cotai] I. To be honest with you we were a bit concerned about that, it’s to accommodate the US audience, but we had no problems,” Scott Messinger says. “It was an extraordinary event last year, amongst so many notable extraordinary events, and we have every expectation that Clash II will exceed that. It’s a very strong card from top to bottom,” the top executive notes, adding that they help raising Sands China brand and the fame of Macau as a must-
go destination: “These kinds of events have a global audience, but will be seen by up to as much as 65/70 million people in mainland China live. It’s instant positive proof that something is going on in Macau that suggests this is an amazing destination for leisure and business travelling, because you are seeing the diversity of the product offering.”
the story of kk ng, the macau kid
Scott J. Messinger thinks that one of the best aspects of the cooperation between Sands China and Top Rank for the past 18 months “is the story of KK Ng.” Dubbed the Macau Kid by Top Rank founder and CEO Bob Arum, the local fighter was on the first Clash in Cotai card a year ago in his first-ever professional fight. “Here is a young man who has dedicated himself to his craft, he is undefeated in his pro-career, he has not only gained prominence in Macau and Hong Kong; he has also travelled with us to mainland China,” says Mr Messinger. “We generally don’t talk about this, but we invest upwards of seven figures of US [dollars] in advertising, promoting and marketing for our fights, this particular fight, and KK is in all of that advertising,” he adds.
major film project in macau
A major film project is going to be made in Macau, Scott J. Messinger revealed to the Times. He said that the name of the project can’t be disclosed until a formal announcement is made. “As more and more people are becoming aware of Macau and what we are doing here, it has led directly to a major film project that we are going to undertake here for a US company,” Mr Messinger stated. Stressing that Sands China has been doing a lot of film-related projects and events, including Bollywood ones also, the company’s corporate vice-president said that they are, “getting more and more interest from US companies.”
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