OLN and Top Rank hit the small screen tonight

A couple years ago, there was widespread worry that television boxing coverage was going to fall by the wayside. The hardcore missed their USA fix and it looked like ESPN was going to back off boxing, and reduce their fight budget to a mere pittance.

Fast forward to today, with the debut of Bob Arum’s boxing series on the OLN (Outside Life Network), and it is clear that anyone but the most obsessed fan has more than enough weekly content on the tube to keep them occupied.

OLN will come out of the gates with a Kelly Pavlik-Bronco McKart main event taking place at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut. A live broadcast starts at 9 PM (Eastern).

The telecast will also feature junior middleweight contender Anthony “The Messenger� Thompson, who takes on Mohammad Said.

If you tune in to OLN before the fight to get a taste of the network at 8:30 PM you will be transfixed by an episode of “Expedition Safari.” After boxing, the net will show “Ruger’s Hunting Adventure,” at 11 PM. Does this seem like a logical home for the sweet science? Maybe not now, but in September, OLN, which is owned by cable giant Comcast, will change its name to “Versus,” and ditch the outdoor “sports” angle.

“As OLN transitions to Versus, we continue to seek out and add sports that fortify the competitive core of the new brand,” said Gavin Harvey, President of OLN. “Boxing is the ultimate statement of man vs. man and is an exciting addition to our expanding portfolio of competitive genres.”

The revamp has been ongoing for a stretch, as the net secured the rights to “Survivor” repeats in 2005. They hoped to get a piece of the MLB and NFL pie, but ESPN blocked the baseball pitch, and the NFL Network will show their own fare.

The OLN boxing strategy is essentially a two-year deal with Bob Arum’s Top Rank organization. The contract will also give Comcast the rights to carry classic fights for its video-on-demand offerings on its cable systems.

Twelve live fights will be shown during the first year of the deal, and Bob Papa will describe the action with Wally Matthews providing colorful analysis.

The following Thursday after live bouts, 10 “classic archive” shoes will run, with footage chosen from the 6,000-hour Top Rank library, that includes bouts with Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran, Marvin Hagler, Thomas Hearns and Alexis Arguello.

Pavlik, 24-years-old, is currently ranked #2 by the World Boxing Council (WBC), #3 by the World Boxing Association (WBA), and #4 by the World Boxing Organization (WBO).

McKart, 35-years-old, is a former world champion and six-time world championship contender. Pavlik enters the ring with a 27-0 record and 24 knockouts. McKart, a southpaw, enters with a record of 48-6 and 31 knockouts. He’s 3-3 in his last six outings.

The match is scheduled for 12 rounds.