Hatton, Malignaggi and Crolla launch ULTIMATE BOXXER, eight-man tournament kicks off April 27, 2018

[Ruthless-RKO]

ULTIMATE BOXXER, Britain’s first Boxing Entertainment brand, launched today in Central London, with ambassadors and non-directors Ricky Hatton, Paulie Malignaggi, Anthony Crolla and BBC Radio 1Xtra DJ Charlie Sloth, presented by Rickie Haywood Williams.

The elimination tournament format, approved by the British Boxing Board of Control, is a unique, fast-paced concept for professional boxing. Each event has an initial eight fighters, who compete in four quarter-finals of 3 x 3-minute rounds followed by two semi-finals and one final, with the winner becoming tournament champion for their weight class.

As an independent sports entertainment organisation, the directors have created a transparent brand that focuses on providing an equal platform for fighters. BBBoC license-holders and promotors for ULTIMATE BOXXER include Carl Greaves, Jalal Kamani, Executive Director, and, Benjamin Shalom, founder & Managing Director.

ULTIMATE BOXXER was founded to provide a transformed boxing experience through their online power & flexibility. The product is designed to suit all boxing fans as well as those hooked on entertainment, event and celebrity experiences to catapult boxing in the 21st century.

‘ULTIMATE BOXXER 1’ will take place on Saturday 28th April at EventCity in Manchester with 8 undefeated WELTERWEIGHT fighters from around the United Kingdom.

Events will be a seated intimate experience with tickets are expected to sell-out. Tickets will go on pre-sale on the 19th February for the event launch, for those that have signed up at www.ultimateboxxer.com

ULTIMATE BOXXER is the emergence of the 21st century using leading digital brands to provide a transformed boxing experience for the next generation. ULTIMATE BOXXER will use cutting edge social media and internet broadcasting to appeal to mainstream and non-boxing purists. A major partner of the event is UNILAD, the largest Facebook page in the world who will broadcast the events to millions of people.

[Ruthless-RKO]

So kinda like Prizefighter.. EventCity though.. Not bad.. Close to home..

[Boxerbeetle]

So it’s basically Prizefighter but being streamed on Unilad?

[Sklar]

Sounds shite.

[Sklar]

Bit snide my last post. They’re just young lads having a go so good look to them and to be fair they are probably not old enough to remember Prizefighter.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Bit snide my last post. They’re just young lads having a go so good look to them and to be fair they are probably not old enough to remember Prizefighter.

Yeh, was a bit harsh to be honest. Nice little tournaments like this are okay. Just to get a name around.

Holyfield is going to do the same in the States with the WBC.. Have younger guys in a tournament, earn some small money and a good way to make it into the top 50 rankings for WBC. Gotta start somewhere.

[Oiky]

Decent, I like things like this

[mfc_se15]

Bit snide my last post. They’re just young lads having a go so good look to them and to be fair they are probably not old enough to remember Prizefighter.

One benefit I think of Prizefighter was it gave fighters an opportunity to lose their '0' and it not be a major deal. I think the tournaments like this are fine for what they are so I'm in favour.

I can't see any difference between this and Prizefighter though so why did it even need to get approval from the board, surely they'd already given that to the concept when they agreed to Prizefighter?

[jamamb]

Decent, I like things like this

i like tournaments myself

[slapbangwhallop]

I like the sound of it. Prizefighter might not be everyones cuppa but it got a lot of my mates that werent really into boxing into supporting boxing and now they regularly attend lots of pro boxing.

[bripez]

The elimination tournament format, approved by the British Boxing Board of Control, is a unique, fast-paced concept for professional boxing. Each event has an initial eight fighters, who compete in four quarter-finals of 3 x 3-minute rounds followed by two semi-finals and one final, with the winner becoming tournament champion for their weight class.

Bit of a poetic licence to use "unique" - although if it gives lads work, money and opportunity then hopefully it can only be a good thing.

[stujones]

I'm guessing Eddie is ditching Prizefighter given that I'm sure he had to green light Crolla's involvement in it.

[BitPlayer]

Lol, there's been tournaments like this long before prizefighter. There's loads on boxrec from the 1800's

http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/100374

This guy did a lot.

[Boxerbeetle]

Lol, there's been tournaments like this long before prizefighter. There's loads on boxrec from the 1800's

http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/100374

This guy did a lot.

I really wish I could get in a time machine and go watch some boxing from the 1800s live. Must have been quite the experience.

[jamamb]

i remember they had a 1 night, 8 man, 3 x 3 tournament in the us back about 15 years ago. a bunch of recognizable 2nd/3rd tier us guys. mo harris beat tony thompson in the final although it doesnt appear on there boxrec records. prize money was 100k us. derrick jefferson and ray austin were in it too.

and more recently there have been lots of 'biggers better' tournaments in europe. i think bridies won a few of these and so did probably top 20 cruiser constantine berjanu. these arent on there boxrec records either.

tournaments have been especially common in kickboxing for years, most notably with the k1 world grand prix finals and all the regional tournaments they had to build to that.

[BitPlayer]

Lol, there's been tournaments like this long before prizefighter. There's loads on boxrec from the 1800's

http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/100374

This guy did a lot.

I really wish I could get in a time machine and go watch some boxing from the 1800s live. Must have been quite the experience.

One crazy story I heard was Tommy Ryan go headbutted in the fight, and said "What do you call that?" to which the ref replied "You have a head too Tommy". Then Tommy Ryan knocked his opponent's teeth out with headbutting. That's form memory so some of the details might have been off.

[jamesmcdonnell]

The only problem I have with this format, is that an injury can derail it, and result in the best fighters not being in it towards the end.

[jamamb]

i remember when a reserve won prizefighter having only had one fight compared to the two for the other finalist

[jamesmcdonnell]

Lol, there's been tournaments like this long before prizefighter. There's loads on boxrec from the 1800's

http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/100374

This guy did a lot.

I really wish I could get in a time machine and go watch some boxing from the 1800s live. Must have been quite the experience.

It would have been interesting to watch the old broughton rules matches, which allowed throws, locks, and wrestling.

[Ruthless-RKO]

£50,000 prize money. Seen it on Facebook.

[KiwiRider]

£50,000 prize money. Seen it on Facebook.

That's not bad.
Some good guys in the past have come out of these sorts of things.
What was that Friday night fights tourney that Teddy used to commentate on ESPN?
A few guys made their name in that, as well as the Brit version.

[jamamb]

boxinco

lightweight version won by terry flanagan opponent petr petrov, who to be fair is pretty decent and at least euro level.

willie monroe won one of them and liam smith opponent john thomas did too.

hw version won by andrey fedosov who strangely seems to have disappered. i think maybe he went to mma. lenroy thomas got kod by fedosov in the semis and joe parker challenger raz cojanu got ktfo in the semis by runner up don dennis.

[BitPlayer]

Lol, there's been tournaments like this long before prizefighter. There's loads on boxrec from the 1800's

http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/100374

This guy did a lot.

I really wish I could get in a time machine and go watch some boxing from the 1800s live. Must have been quite the experience.

It would have been interesting to watch the old broughton rules matches, which allowed throws, locks, and wrestling.

Pre Broughton rules it was even more of a free for all. I've heard it claimed James Figg throw someone out of a ring once, and I've heard it could just keep going until someone wouldn't or couldn't, rather than the 10 count.

After Broughton rules, but still early, there's the crazy account of when Gentleman John Jackson KOed Daniel Mendoza by grabbing him by the hair and punching him to oblivion.

[stujones]

Used to love watching French cup matches on Eurosport. According to Holdsworth these were regular tournaments (not on the same night) and the winner would not only win a cup and call himself the French cup champion but was mandatory for the French national title.

I really would love to see a promoter do that in this country - perhaps not British mandatory but perhaps English / Celtic belt - and be eligible for the British title. I think it would give mid tier / journeymen fighter something to go for.

[dalcumly]

Is this not the ABA's with money.