While boxing struggles to make the best matches possible, the Championships Struggle finally leads the way as we near the end of the year, writes George Gigney
Broadcasts
The comparison between boxing and mixed martial arts (MMA) has been going on for decades. It is a somewhat unfair argument to assume that they are completely different sports and that one is centuries older than the other. That being said, the meteoric rise of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has made the debate all the more worthwhile, especially when it comes to the package offered to fans.
Boxing has long been the most popular combat sport in the world and has the potential to become one of the biggest sports altogether. But the UFC — especially with its global expansion over the past decade — is starting to prove the science. If you need proof, just look at the past few weeks.
The first is the Conor Benn incident, which is still ongoing. Attempts to get through the fight with Chris Eubank Jnr despite a failed drug test led to boxing going bad. Then there’s the one-of-a-kind punch that a potential fight between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua as well as Terence Crawford and Errol Spence won’t happen anytime soon.
Instead, Fury is battling Derek Chisora in a pointless three-part battle and Crawford will face David Avanesyan in a solid title defense but end up being overpowered. Spence and Joshua have yet to confirm their next steps.
It’s a real patch for boxing. The only ray of hope we had was a stellar contest between Claressa Shields and Savannah Marshall. Looking ahead to the rest of the calendar year, there isn’t much to get you really excited about either.
Meanwhile, this past weekend, the UFC held the most stacked fight of the year (maybe even in the last few years). Although it took place in Abu Dhabi, the event was widely covered in both the UK and the US.
The new lightweight champion in Islam Makhachev was crowned with a remarkable record. He then went head-to-head with UFC No. 1 Alexander Volkanovski, and the two verbally agreed to fight next year in Australia, Volkanovski’s hometown.
The card didn’t live up to fans’ candid expectations but it was still a resounding success. And in just a few weeks, the UFC will host another blockbuster event, this one headed by Israel Adesanya to defend his middleweight belt against former rival Alex Pereira. Then there’s another big show in Las Vegas a month later. Oh, and the company announced a PPV demonstration in Australia in early 2023.
The reason we’re talking about UFC broadcasts in a boxing magazine is because they’re an example of what happens when you get it right. Boxing and MMA have many differences but at the core they are the same; they take two people to war, put them on well-defined boundaries, and they fight to determine who is better.
UFC is not without its problems but it always goes from strength to strength. Not only is there much to be learned from this, but there is also a growing risk that the UFC and MMA attract more boxing audiences. It’s not a zero-sum game, but both sports are expensive to follow – especially with all the PPVs on offer – and more casual fans are turning to products. sleeker, more reliable UFC product.
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That said, according to media company SportsPro at least, boxers are much more likely to be marketed than MMA fighters. They recently released their annual list of the 100 most marketable athletes on the planet, using what SportsPro calls a “Marketability Score” based on three factors: “strength” brand, economy and audience.”
There are no MMA fighters in the top 100 while four are the best. Irish superstar Katie Taylor is the highest ranked boxer, ranked 47th. The other three are Canelo Alvarez (64), Tyson Fury (75) and Anthony Joshua (88).
Although SportsPro compiles a complete list of 100 athletes, it mainly focuses on the top 50 athletes, of which Taylor is the only one to be included in the world boxing scene. Her position puts her right in front of England captain Harry Kane and golfer Rory McIlroy.
These types of lists should always be made with a pinch of salt – an athlete’s market potential is nearly impossible to quantify with certainty – but it’s important that Taylor stays high, especially as compared to the likes of Canelo and Joshua.
She recently spoke to DAZN ahead of her upcoming fight with Karen Carabajal this weekend, suggesting that retirement – while not imminent – was on her mind. She uttered those scandalous words, “I can’t do this forever,” and now she’ll likely be answered by questions about how long she thinks she can do it. .
That wouldn’t be fair since she’s still the best female fighter on the planet. Whenever Taylor decides to hang them up, it will be interesting to look back at her impact on the sport.
After the fallout of the Spence-Crawford war, both men spoke to various media outlets about how they did everything they could to get the fight done. This is part of the problem with the scope of the talks – it’s hardly possible that Spence or Crawford don’t want this fight. All warriors want to face the best possible opposition.
When fighting breaks down, it’s usually never the gladiators. They don’t have to talk in the press about how badly they want a war and what concessions they have made to get it done.
Also, the criticisms against Fury and Crawford’s team about having backup options for the superfights they’re negotiating are uncanny. It’s just good business sense to have another fight back – even if the alternatives disappoint.
Boxing on the box
October 29
Katie Taylor-Karen Carabajal
DAZN
Coverage starts at 7pm
October 30
Vasiliy Lomachenko-Jamaine Ortiz
Sky Sports Action
Coverage starts at 1am
Joseph Diaz-William Zepeda
DAZN
Coverage starts at 1am
November 1
Kenshiro Teraji-Hiroto Kyoguchi
DAZN
Coverage starts at 10am
