"Could it really only have been a year and a half? Seems longer, and maybe because despite the extraordinary accumulation of talent and the seeming abundance of money, competitive fights, like Leo Santa Cruz vs. Abner Mares and Keith Thurman vs. Shawn Porter, have been few and far between. For the most part, PBC stars have been given faint-hearted matchups against lackluster opponents, followed by long layoffs, with predictable results in TV ratings and advertising sales. You might have thought Spence's windfall audience of more than 6 million viewers in the NBC time slot just prior to Rio's closing ceremony would have given PBC a rejuvenative bounce. But in late September NBC announced that two prime time PBC cards in December were dropped for now, and along with them three shows on NBC Sports Network.