The world will never be right ...

[Sequitorian]

The world will never be right ... until Boxing is recognized ... (once again) ... as the essence of sport ... the greatest of sports ... the sport that ... (as George Foreman once said) ... "all other sports aspire to" ... ... ... ... ...

[allInmoderationAIM]

True..... but...

[Wales]

It's been the master of its own downfall. Fragmented titles has resulted in multiple champions in each weight. Governing bodies making ranking systems up as they go along doesn't help either.

We're stuck with multiple belts, but a huge improvement would be if they did away with voluntary defences. Champion must face the #2 in the rankings and to climb rankings you beat someone above you. If #6 beats #2 they swap places and so on. Far too many soft "world title" fights

[caldo2025]

I'm tired of people saying this kind of stuff. Boxing will never again be as big as it was back in it's day. The reason being, Boxing hardly any competition for entertainment dollars. There was a handful of TV channels back then, not a million like their is today. The world was a simpler place back then. Those days are never coming back but the sport is still stronger than you think.

Just look what Floyd and Manny brought in for money. They stunk up the joint but it was the biggest fight in terms of dollars ever. You can't say the sport is weak when you can bring in numbers like they did.

[keithmoonhangover]

I blame the IBF. Two world champions wasn't bad. Usually one of them was 'the man'. If they weren't, we sometimes got Leonard-Hearns or Curry-McCrory.

[Wales]

I'm tired of people saying this kind of stuff. Boxing will never again be as big as it was back in it's day. The reason being, Boxing hardly any competition for entertainment dollars. There was a handful of TV channels back then, not a million like their is today. The world was a simpler place back then. Those days are never coming back but the sport is still stronger than you think.

Just look what Floyd and Manny brought in for money. They stunk up the joint but it was the biggest fight in terms of dollars ever. You can't say the sport is weak when you can bring in numbers like they did.

Good post. In 1980s in UK we had 3 channels.
Barry Mcguiggan v Pedroza had 18m viewers! 18m !!!
Contrast that with Hatton Mayweather that "smashed uk ppv records" - that had 1.2m viewers

Boxing got caught out not moving with the times when UFC exploded onto scene. Arrogance of those involved maybe didn't see the threat. Fortunately UFC looks like it will peak in it's current format when a fighter becomes bigger than the promoter and can earn more by going solo. Boxing is slowly becoming more savy too, building fights to attract more fans (programmes like face off and 24/7)

[Chepppaaa]

100 % true boxing > any other sport

[Ricky_]

100 % true boxing > any other sport

In what way?

[Chepppaaa]

100 % true boxing > any other sport

In what way?

if you dont get it, i cant explain it. boxing is the best

[jamesmcdonnell]

I'm tired of people saying this kind of stuff. Boxing will never again be as big as it was back in it's day. The reason being, Boxing hardly any competition for entertainment dollars. There was a handful of TV channels back then, not a million like their is today. The world was a simpler place back then. Those days are never coming back but the sport is still stronger than you think.

Just look what Floyd and Manny brought in for money. They stunk up the joint but it was the biggest fight in terms of dollars ever. You can't say the sport is weak when you can bring in numbers like they did.

Good post. In 1980s in UK we had 3 channels.
Barry Mcguiggan v Pedroza had 18m viewers! 18m !!!
Contrast that with Hatton Mayweather that "smashed uk ppv records" - that had 1.2m viewers

Boxing got caught out not moving with the times when UFC exploded onto scene. Arrogance of those involved maybe didn't see the threat. Fortunately UFC looks like it will peak in it's current format when a fighter becomes bigger than the promoter and can earn more by going solo. Boxing is slowly becoming more savy too, building fights to attract more fans (programmes like face off and 24/7)

Where will they go if they go solo? There's nowhere else to go outside of UFC. Al the other organisations are tiny.

[Tony1244]

The world will never be right ... until Boxing is recognized ... (once again) ... as the essence of sport ... the greatest of sports ... the sport that ... (as George Foreman once said) ... "all other sports aspire to" ... ... ... ... ...

"You play football. You don't play boxing." George Foreman

[Sequitorian]

I'm tired of people saying this kind of stuff. Boxing will never again be as big as it was back in it's day. The reason being, Boxing hardly any competition for entertainment dollars. There was a handful of TV channels back then, not a million like their is today. The world was a simpler place back then. Those days are never coming back but the sport is still stronger than you think.

Just look what Floyd and Manny brought in for money. They stunk up the joint but it was the biggest fight in terms of dollars ever. You can't say the sport is weak when you can bring in numbers like they did.

I never said Boxing is weak ... I said "The world will never be right ...".

This isn't about Boxing; it's about the future of civilization ...

[funso banjo baby]

it has followed the inevitable path of corporatism and greed that infects most major global sports.

football is utterly corrupt at world level.

boxing has always been corrupt but it has gone in phases that are linked to all sorts of things especially (in the case of modern post war boxing) with the advent of technology.

we are all reminiscing about the golden age with Muhammad Ali but you only have to go back to the mid 70's to observe a major change to boxing.

Don King and The Ring Magazine were involved in a seedy piece of corruption around the heavyweight tournament that King was trying to get off the ground (circa 77). It was scuttled by sleaze and lead to the emergence of the alphabet world organisations in the form that we recognize today. Once PPV was rolled out across the world the inevitable death of the sport was assured whilst at the same time the myth was propagated (and still holds) that it is always getting better and better. An example of this is when the media hails someone winning a fragmented WBO title as being 'historic' ???

that's a strange take on what constitutes 'historic'. it may be officially accurate but it lacks a heck of a lot of context and is utterly devoid of nuance.

When Yoko Ono and god knows who finally decided to sell the Beatles back catalogue to ITunes this was also heralded as a 'historic' milestone in music.




every other week some rnb act like Beyoncé or kanye or Lukas brown or whoever is heralded as the biggest selling recording artist of all time!!!!!

yet how can you possibly measure internet downloads against the millions of vinyl records that were purchased in person from record shops????

you cant. and its absurd to even attempt it.

so to apply this same logic to boxing...don't bother comparing the unbeaten 'historic' record of Joe Calzaghe to the records of Archie Moore or Marvin Hagler.

that would be ridiculous

[Stuarty]

I'm tired of people saying this kind of stuff. Boxing will never again be as big as it was back in it's day. The reason being, Boxing hardly any competition for entertainment dollars. There was a handful of TV channels back then, not a million like their is today. The world was a simpler place back then. Those days are never coming back but the sport is still stronger than you think.

Just look what Floyd and Manny brought in for money. They stunk up the joint but it was the biggest fight in terms of dollars ever. You can't say the sport is weak when you can bring in numbers like they did.

Good post. In 1980s in UK we had 3 channels.
Barry Mcguiggan v Pedroza had 18m viewers! 18m !!!
Contrast that with Hatton Mayweather that "smashed uk ppv records" - that had 1.2m viewers

Boxing got caught out not moving with the times when UFC exploded onto scene. Arrogance of those involved maybe didn't see the threat. Fortunately UFC looks like it will peak in it's current format when a fighter becomes bigger than the promoter and can earn more by going solo. Boxing is slowly becoming more savy too, building fights to attract more fans (programmes like face off and 24/7)

Where will they go if they go solo? There's nowhere else to go outside of UFC. Al the other organisations are tiny.

Car park wars?

[Wales]

I'm tired of people saying this kind of stuff. Boxing will never again be as big as it was back in it's day. The reason being, Boxing hardly any competition for entertainment dollars. There was a handful of TV channels back then, not a million like their is today. The world was a simpler place back then. Those days are never coming back but the sport is still stronger than you think.

Just look what Floyd and Manny brought in for money. They stunk up the joint but it was the biggest fight in terms of dollars ever. You can't say the sport is weak when you can bring in numbers like they did.

Good post. In 1980s in UK we had 3 channels.
Barry Mcguiggan v Pedroza had 18m viewers! 18m !!!
Contrast that with Hatton Mayweather that "smashed uk ppv records" - that had 1.2m viewers

Boxing got caught out not moving with the times when UFC exploded onto scene. Arrogance of those involved maybe didn't see the threat. Fortunately UFC looks like it will peak in it's current format when a fighter becomes bigger than the promoter and can earn more by going solo. Boxing is slowly becoming more savy too, building fights to attract more fans (programmes like face off and 24/7)

Where will they go if they go solo? There's nowhere else to go outside of UFC. Al the other organisations are tiny.

Its when the fighters become bigger than the organisation. Which will happen / is starting to happen.

Mcgreggor already looks to have outgrown the organisation.almost at a stage where they need him more than he needs them. He could make more on his own show selling out Corke Park for example. Just the logistics of it actually happening. Like when boxers like Naz or Hatton left Warren. All the other promoters in UK were tiny in comparison, but they left chasing the pound notes. Who's to say mcgreggor (just as example) doesn't set up 'mcgreggor promotions" and put on fights like de la hoya did. UFC don't pay fantastic money and most fighters on very short contracts.

UFC is market leader, unopposed, but it wouldn't surprise me to see someone chase a bigger slice of the pie

[thomasjkelley]

I never said Boxing is weak ... I said "The world will never be right ...".

This isn't about Boxing; it's about the future of civilization ...

I feel ya brother! It is about the future of human civilization.

[littlepug]

imagine how we would moan if we were born in the "old" days when the heavyweight champ could go a couple of years without defending his title ? or every time he did defend the title it seemed to be sanctioned by a different body ? boxing hasnt changed at all, its just evolved like its always had to.

[funso banjo baby]

imagine how we would moan if we were born in the "old" days when the heavyweight champ could go a couple of years without defending his title ? or every time he did defend the title it seemed to be sanctioned by a different body ? boxing hasnt changed at all, its just evolved like its always had to.

actually heavyweights champs have defended at least once a year for over a century. the only big gaps are Louis (during the war) Dempsey and Johnson...and even those were just 1-2 years.

[jujigatame]

To be honest I feel bad sometimes being a boxing fan. I really love the sport (and combat sports in general) but as exciting as it is, there's some amount of shame in the idea that these guys are beating the crap out of each other for my entertainment.

[littlepug]

To be honest I feel bad sometimes being a boxing fan. I really love the sport (and combat sports in general) but as exciting as it is, there's some amount of shame in the idea that these guys are beating the crap out of each other for my entertainment.

I know but they are very willing to fight for our entertainment because they love it

[SFW]

To be honest I feel bad sometimes being a boxing fan. I really love the sport (and combat sports in general) but as exciting as it is, there's some amount of shame in the idea that these guys are beating the crap out of each other for my entertainment.

Amen

[Oiky]

It's been the master of its own downfall. Fragmented titles has resulted in multiple champions in each weight. Governing bodies making ranking systems up as they go along doesn't help either.

We're stuck with multiple belts, but a huge improvement would be if they did away with voluntary defences. Champion must face the #2 in the rankings and to climb rankings you beat someone above you. If #6 beats #2 they swap places and so on. Far too many soft "world title" fights

good post

[thomasjkelley]

To be honest I feel bad sometimes being a boxing fan. I really love the sport (and combat sports in general) but as exciting as it is, there's some amount of shame in the idea that these guys are beating the crap out of each other for my entertainment.

But doesn't it feel good to be bad every once in a while? Revel in your debauchery!

[JohnL]

Boxing will outlast MMA. It's a (sweet) science refined over 3000 years while MMA is glorified street fights.

[jujigatame]

Boxing will outlast MMA. It's a (sweet) science refined over 3000 years while MMA is glorified street fights.

Silly statement. Both sports go back at least as far as the days of ancient Greece, as does wrestling.