What would boxers prefer?

[dalcumly]

Would boxers prefer to have 1 fight per month and earn £1,000 or have 3 fights a month and earn £1,500?

The reason why I ask is due to the slow death of professional boxing in this country as evidenced by the reduction in the number of boxers and shows over the last couple of decades. If boxers took less and fought more often then this might encourage more small hall promoters to come on board and take a risk. I remember the days when every seaside resort had some sort of boxing tournament every other week during the summer and I'm no doubt that thousands of men and boys were attracted to boxing simply because the opportunity presented itself while on holiday.
Every tournamant now seems either to be on TV or a dinner show and there is such a gap in time between TV boxing that the casual fan simply concentrates on other things.
If we were to imagine a graph based on interest in boxing in this country we could measure the downward slope and predict a time when boxing as we know it will end. In 1960 the Boxing News sold 150,000 copies every week and now its around 10,000. When Harry Carpenter was commentating on fights like Billy Walker against John Prescott there would be around 10 million viewers. A huge fight now is lucky to attract 750,000 , I believe. Every national newspaper had a reporter who focussed on boxing , now there is none.
I have always thought that any trend ( multiple TV channels, fast food ,supermarkets etc etc) which happens in the USA arrives here around 10 years later. Well have a look at boxing in America . How many Olympic medals ?? How many heavyweight boxers challenging for the world title? In America they have around 12 'huge' boxing events a year and a handful of people make lots of money. This result of this however is that they are strangling the life out of the sport. Has anybody bought the RING MAGAZINE recently ?
If you think I'm being overly pessimistic ask yourself if you've seen a good fight in the last 6 weeks , and why SKY's Ringside programme are having to interview people like Eubank and Benn instead of discussing current fights . Why is the Boxing News filled with interviews ??

[JLP]

I don't think the wants of a prizefighter should be given any more consideration than the wants of a racehorse.

Short fights, drinking, and on site betting is the way to get small hall boxing back on the up. That's what the majority of the public want.

[jonp]

Would boxers prefer to have 1 fight per month and earn £1,000 or have 3 fights a month and earn £1,500?

The reason why I ask is due to the slow death of professional boxing in this country as evidenced by the reduction in the number of boxers and shows over the last couple of decades. If boxers took less and fought more often then this might encourage more small hall promoters to come on board and take a risk. I remember the days when every seaside resort had some sort of boxing tournament every other week during the summer and I'm no doubt that thousands of men and boys were attracted to boxing simply because the opportunity presented itself while on holiday.
Every tournamant now seems either to be on TV or a dinner show and there is such a gap in time between TV boxing that the casual fan simply concentrates on other things.
If we were to imagine a graph based on interest in boxing in this country we could measure the downward slope and predict a time when boxing as we know it will end. In 1960 the Boxing News sold 150,000 copies every week and now its around 10,000. When Harry Carpenter was commentating on fights like Billy Walker against John Prescott there would be around 10 million viewers. A huge fight now is lucky to attract 750,000 , I believe. Every national newspaper had a reporter who focussed on boxing , now there is none.
I have always thought that any trend ( multiple TV channels, fast food ,supermarkets etc etc) which happens in the USA arrives here around 10 years later. Well have a look at boxing in America . How many Olympic medals ?? How many heavyweight boxers challenging for the world title? In America they have around 12 'huge' boxing events a year and a handful of people make lots of money. This result of this however is that they are strangling the life out of the sport. Has anybody bought the RING MAGAZINE recently ?
If you think I'm being overly pessimistic ask yourself if you've seen a good fight in the last 6 weeks , and why SKY's Ringside programme are having to interview people like Eubank and Benn instead of discussing current fights . Why is the Boxing News filled with interviews ??

To be fair theres been more shows and registered pros in last couple of years than there have been for a long time.

[Looking On]

I don't think the wants of a prizefighter should be given any more consideration than the wants of a racehorse.

Short fights, drinking, and on site betting is the way to get small hall boxing back on the up. That's what the majority of the public want.

On site betting should only be allowed at the biggest events , too easy to be corrupted by betting and even if theres no corruption it will lead to fingers being pointed anytime something goes amiss .

[JLP]

I don't think the wants of a prizefighter should be given any more consideration than the wants of a racehorse.

Short fights, drinking, and on site betting is the way to get small hall boxing back on the up. That's what the majority of the public want.

On site betting should only be allowed at the biggest events , too easy to be corrupted by betting and even if theres no corruption it will lead to fingers being pointed anytime something goes amiss .

I think on site betting would actually reduce corruption and the occurrence of home town decisions and the like. It would also mean that fights had to be more competitively matched.

[MarkMcBurney]

I don't think you can compare the US with here for boxing at the moment.

The biggest reason for the lack of top heavyweights over there at present, I believe, is the boom in the past ten years of UFC. It has well and truly over taken boxing as the most popular fight game and as a result that's where the big money is, quickly. There are massive UFC events almost weekly and it gets an obscene amount of coverage; boxing has become a poorer relation now.

Will it be the case over here? I'm not sure that trend will follow; for one reason or another Brits have never truly taken to MMA in the way we have always loved boxing, and I really hope that stays the same.

[squared circle]

Not sure its as bleak as you say.

A Few papers still have boxing writers, even if some double up. Eg Gareth a Davies in telegraph covers boxing and mma and does it bloody well too.

Late Dec and Jan always quiet for obvious reasons. If he hadnt been injured then Jan boxing news and ringsides would have centred on kell brook without so many colour pieces filling.

Its a different world mate. Years ago the whole country would stop for cup final day, almost literally. Nowadays it might not even be the top billed sports prog of that weekend but you don't hear football is dying.

Boxing is many things, and the politics drive me mad, but dying is not one of them.

[matko]

Would boxers prefer to have 1 fight per month and earn £1,000 or have 3 fights a month and earn £1,500?

The reason why I ask is due to the slow death of professional boxing in this country as evidenced by the reduction in the number of boxers and shows over the last couple of decades. If boxers took less and fought more often then this might encourage more small hall promoters to come on board and take a risk. I remember the days when every seaside resort had some sort of boxing tournament every other week during the summer and I'm no doubt that thousands of men and boys were attracted to boxing simply because the opportunity presented itself while on holiday.
Every tournamant now seems either to be on TV or a dinner show and there is such a gap in time between TV boxing that the casual fan simply concentrates on other things.
If we were to imagine a graph based on interest in boxing in this country we could measure the downward slope and predict a time when boxing as we know it will end. In 1960 the Boxing News sold 150,000 copies every week and now its around 10,000. When Harry Carpenter was commentating on fights like Billy Walker against John Prescott there would be around 10 million viewers. A huge fight now is lucky to attract 750,000 , I believe. Every national newspaper had a reporter who focussed on boxing , now there is none.
I have always thought that any trend ( multiple TV channels, fast food ,supermarkets etc etc) which happens in the USA arrives here around 10 years later. Well have a look at boxing in America . How many Olympic medals ?? How many heavyweight boxers challenging for the world title? In America they have around 12 'huge' boxing events a year and a handful of people make lots of money. This result of this however is that they are strangling the life out of the sport. Has anybody bought the RING MAGAZINE recently ?
If you think I'm being overly pessimistic ask yourself if you've seen a good fight in the last 6 weeks , and why SKY's Ringside programme are having to interview people like Eubank and Benn instead of discussing current fights . Why is the Boxing News filled with interviews ??

To be fair theres been more shows and registered pros in last couple of years than there have been for a long time.

That's what I fought in Bolton I can only name 2-3 pros from 1980-2000's and 1-2 boxing gyms now there is a few pros and about 12-14 gyms seems to be booming in lancs !!

[Jeff Thomas]

Seems to be more in the gyms, and less at the shows.

Wonder why?

[dalcumly]

I still think that boxing is sliding away , but it can still be saved. Those earning money out of the sport , quite rightly I suppose, are interested in the here and now , not planning for the future. I think the onus is on the Board of Control to consider how they expect British boxing to look like in 5 years time. The Board are progressive in terms of training events and making the sport safer, but they should be looking closely at how they can get more people ( boxers) involved. Of course they can't do it all themselves but the boxing media can help.
The Boxing News for instance seems to be consumed with what happens everywhere EXCEPT Britain , and Ringside seem to have binned their series with Jamie Moore going round the gyms?
The Board need to bring together a 'focus' group of people who do not have their own personal interests at heart and get an idea of the way forward.

If I was wealthy ,and could afford to lose money for a while, I would take promotions all round the country to towns where there once was a boxing base and try to stimulate interest at the grass roots .

[bripez]

Would boxers prefer to have 1 fight per month and earn £1,000 or have 3 fights a month and earn £1,500?

How about, either 2 fights a year or 6 fights a year ?

It seems that novice pro's fight very infrequently (other than those considered "journeymen") - this cannot be good for their development.

[bripez]

Seems to be more in the gyms, and less at the shows.

Wonder why?

Interesting dynamic.

I believe that the growth in pros is due to the closed shop approach of the funding - a boxer is unlikely to break into the international set up by winning the ABA's for example.

Therefore a decent regional level amateur will decide to go pro - where they will fight other decent regional level amateurs over 4 rounds for £500 (need to sell tickets) rather than over 3 rounds for a trophy (no need to sell tickets).

So, in the main they are just boxing the lads they would otherwise box if they stayed amateur and not really moviong along or (more likely) they are all just boxing the one or two usual suspects.

I have read a few times that most pro's box have less than 10 fights before they pack it in - this is just about time for their family / mates to get fed up of paying £40 a go to watch their mate box a fighter with 1-25 records or whatever.

[GreenLightning]

I don't think you can compare the US with here for boxing at the moment.

The biggest reason for the lack of top heavyweights over there at present, I believe, is the boom in the past ten years of UFC. It has well and truly over taken boxing as the most popular fight game and as a result that's where the big money is, quickly. There are massive UFC events almost weekly and it gets an obscene amount of coverage; boxing has become a poorer relation now.

Will it be the case over here? I'm not sure that trend will follow; for one reason or another Brits have never truly taken to MMA in the way we have always loved boxing, and I really hope that stays the same.

nonsense, MMA fighters make fornicate all, only the top, top stars make anything close to big money, I wish people would stop with this overblown "MMA is taking over" crap, as an ex-MMA fan (got bored of it) thats a load of crap, MMA popularity has peaked, and in five years nobody will care any more

[fasteddie]

if I was a pro boxer I would rather have about 2 fights a month to get my record up then a fight every 3 months if I made it to the top that is.

[fasteddie]

I don't think you can compare the US with here for boxing at the moment.

The biggest reason for the lack of top heavyweights over there at present, I believe, is the boom in the past ten years of UFC. It has well and truly over taken boxing as the most popular fight game and as a result that's where the big money is, quickly. There are massive UFC events almost weekly and it gets an obscene amount of coverage; boxing has become a poorer relation now.

Will it be the case over here? I'm not sure that trend will follow; for one reason or another Brits have never truly taken to MMA in the way we have always loved boxing, and I really hope that stays the same.

the biggest reason for lack of heavyweights in the US is they can earn more money on the ice,the basketball court,the football field or the baseball pitch and they dont have to risk getting knocked out for it. look at the ufc heavyweight scene and you will see there is more talent in heavyweight boxing than that,you have cain valasquez junio de santos and overeem other than them 3 the heavyweight scene is as bleak as the US heavyweight scene. as for more money in mma thats garbage,compare the top ufc fighters wage with the top fighters in boxing you will see they are worlds apart. what boxing needs is a dana white someone who can put all fighters under one umberella and if the best dont wanna fight the best they get dropped further down the pecking order and earn considerably less than they would if they fought or dropped completely. i rate what dana has done for their sport and think golden boy are trying to do the same,golden boy are the best promotors in the boxing world imo