Replies

[Cshel86]

I don't know about the rest of the boxing fans out there, but waiting for two big names to save the sport, is killing it. Some fighters are depending on "The Big Fight" before they start to step on the gas. Whatever happened to "everybody fighting everybody"? I was proud to be a boxing fan in the era of De La Hoya, Trinidad, Vargas, Wright, Forrest, Mosley, Mayorga, Hopkins, Taylor, etc. They all fought each other and convincingly worked their way towards big fights, and gave fans something to talk about.

We now have a nearly failed 140 lb division that was very promising, a shakey Welterweight division (still a lot of money in it though) and inexperienced/relatively unknown fighters trying to cash out by begging for fights with the big name fighters. Again, when the two big names hang 'em up, where will the sport be? Will we be proud to watch fighters who stepped it up and earned the top spot, or will we be stuck with guys who got recognized by default?

[Jack 1000]

With Mayweather and Pacquiao likely to stay in boxing only a few more years, I think promoters should focus more on working with each other to produce the best fights based on quality of opposition, activity, and ring record. Boxing needs to stop waiting for the Superstar to fight once a year. Fans and scribes get too impatient with that and for good reason.

Work on some sort of tournament to involve the fans in each division with elimination matches. Experiment with innovations. Use the Internet and Digital Cable/Dish boxes to set up an optional polling system, getting people to tune in to a "Question of the Week" incorporated into specials building up the fighters and fights. Explain to young people how fights are scored and use this technology to allow them to score the fights at home. (Like Verses tried.) I would propose a return for some hot prospects evenly matched say, every other week or so on a commercial network. If the fighters are active and exciting, the fan-base will build. However, once a year for these fading stars at $60 a shot on PPV, is not going to draw new networks or younger fan interest.

Fighters need to fight often, against reasonably matched opposition, where there is always a hint of doubt as to who will win. In the mid 80's or so, Mike Tyson was fighting literally every other week on ESPN and some early fights on ABC sports. People subscribed to HBO in DROVES because Tyson in his prime was a dominate fighter who provided KO excitement most of the time and it drew fans to boxing, because there is was an element about Mike that neither Floyd or Manny understand, especially Floyd. And that is, you have to fight frequently and you have to be accessible to as many homes as possible. Network commercial TV does that. PPV alienates the viewer by forcing them to pay up-front for fights that may not at all be competitive. PPV also alienates the fans, forcing them to pay very expensive amounts of money for a mediocre undercard, and often terrible main event. At least in MMA, Dana Whites cards are most often more competitive top-to-bottom, than PPV boxing cards.

As PPV and premium channel rates continue to push so many people on the verge of reducing services or cutting cable TV/Satellite/or U-Verse altogether, there's going to come a time when there will no longer be a Manny and Floyd to secure multi-millions for promoters and matchmakers. At that point in time, boxing has to look more at up-and comers who might be willing to fight often, produce action , and get younger generations interested again. Get younger people involved, and some big banger KO artists, back on commercial TV that kids would like to see. Use weekly or bi-weekly stories and snibbits about the lives of the fighters, similar to HBO's 24/7 series. Don't just wait for a star to fight once a year.

It looks like Delahoya will soon be the Don King and Bob Arum of big time boxing. But it is doubtful that he will do any of the things mentioned above. What's up with the latest on Dan Rafael and HBO?

Jack

[Cshel86]

With Mayweather and Pacquiao likely to stay in boxing only a few more years, I think promoters should focus more on working with each other to produce the best fights based on quality of opposition, activity, and ring record. Boxing needs to stop waiting for the Superstar to fight once a year. Fans and scribes get too impatient with that and for good reason.

Work on some sort of tournament to involve the fans in each division with elimination matches. Experiment with innovations. Use the Internet and Digital Cable/Dish boxes to set up an optional polling system, getting people to tune in to a "Question of the Week" incorporated into specials building up the fighters and fights. Explain to young people how fights are scored and use this technology to allow them to score the fights at home. (Like Verses tried.) I would propose a return for some hot prospects evenly matched say, every other week or so on a commercial network. If the fighters are active and exciting, the fan-base will build. However, once a year for these fading stars at $60 a shot on PPV, is not going to draw new networks or younger fan interest.

Fighters need to fight often, against reasonably matched opposition, where there is always a hint of doubt as to who will win. In the mid 80's or so, Mike Tyson was fighting literally every other week on ESPN and some early fights on ABC sports. People subscribed to HBO in DROVES because Tyson in his prime was a dominate fighter who provided KO excitement most of the time and it drew fans to boxing, because there is was an element about Mike that neither Floyd or Manny understand, especially Floyd. And that is, you have to fight frequently and you have to be accessible to as many homes as possible. Network commercial TV does that. PPV alienates the viewer by forcing them to pay up-front for fights that may not at all be competitive. PPV also alienates the fans, forcing them to pay very expensive amounts of money for a mediocre undercard, and often terrible main event. At least in MMA, Dana Whites cards are most often more competitive top-to-bottom, than PPV boxing cards.

As PPV and premium channel rates continue to push so many people on the verge of reducing services or cutting cable TV/Satellite/or U-Verse altogether, there's going to come a time when there will no longer be a Manny and Floyd to secure multi-millions for promoters and matchmakers. At that point in time, boxing has to look more at up-and comers who might be willing to fight often, produce action , and get younger generations interested again. Get younger people involved, and some big banger KO artists, back on commercial TV that kids would like to see. Use weekly or bi-weekly stories and snibbits about the lives of the fighters, similar to HBO's 24/7 series. Don't just wait for a star to fight once a year.

It looks like Delahoya will soon be the Don King and Bob Arum of big time boxing. But it is doubtful that he will do any of the things mentioned above. What's up with the latest on Dan Rafael and HBO?

Jack

These are great suggestions, more than I would've came up with. At this point, all boxing fans can do is wait, wait, wait. Waiting for these fights, are frustrating, and it becomes more frustrating when there are only two big attractions in the sport, and the remainder of fighters just sit around and wait in the wind for a miracle to happen.