When did professional boxing die?

[katsteve2012]

It's been crap for the last 5 years. PBC has all the talent and they are working on a deal with Amazon Prime Video, so maybe a free fight once a week? If you read the fight calendar, there are no non-pay per view fights. IMO, that has killed the best sport in the world

Let's hope that Amazon can resurrect a free weekly program. PPV has put watching world ranked fighters out of reach for many. Even the old ShoBox and Boxing After Dark on HBO programs are gone.

 

[okfine]

Prime Video and PBC Announce New MultiYear Rights Agreement

www.premierboxingchampions.com

 

[Mr. Friscus]

The last fights/fighters that drew any significant mainstream attention over the last 20 years were

• Tyson vs Lennox Lewis
• Mayweather vs Manny Pac
• Connor McGregor vs Mayweather

Feel free to add if I missed any

 

[okfine]

Let's hope that Amazon can resurrect a free weekly program. PPV has put watching world ranked fighters out of reach for many. Even the old ShoBox and Boxing After Dark on HBO programs are gone.

I expect a Sunday fight, like CBS Sports Sunday did. Who knows.

 

[sealybobo]

It's dead Jim.

Do you know who the WBC, IBF, WBO or WBC champions are, in any weight class?

If my life depended on it I could not name a one.

In August 1998, USA Tuesday Night Fights was cancelled after programming changes were made and budget cuts reduced the ability to broadcast fights.

 

[sealybobo]

It's dead Jim.

Do you know who the WBC, IBF, WBO or WBC champions are, in any weight class?

If my life depended on it I could not name a one.

I remember watching Mike Tyson on free TV. I would say PPV killed boxing but we had a pirate box so we got to watch all Tyson's matches for free. We were the most popular kids in the neighborhood. My dad was always telling us not to tell the kids we have a pirate box. Their parents could turn us in. But if we didn't have that box, boxing died when they stopped showing boxing on USA and ABC. USA Tuesday night fights and ABC was on Sundays? My god I loved boxing growing up.

I was born in 1970 so I saw Ali and Foreman but I really remember Sugar Ray Leonard, Hagler, Tommy Herns and Roberto Durant. Later John the beast Mugabi. Man that was a great weight class with a lot of good fighters. Every other weight class didn't have the star power.

Oscar De La Hoya,

Lennox Lewis, Buster Douglas, Holyfield, Foreman era

I remember rooting for Larry Holmes but he failed. He was boring. Never knocked anyone out. Lazy boxer. I hate his style of boxing.

Holmes fell one short of matching Rocky Marciano's career record of 49–0 when he lost to Michael Spinks in a 1985 upset.

Pernell Whitaker

I only watched a couple of Floyd Mayweather Jr fights. I like to see knockouts.

You know who I thought was the greatest pound for pound? Roy Jones Jr. He was amazing in his prime.

 

[Nate99]

It's dead Jim.

Do you know who the WBC, IBF, WBO or WBC champions are, in any weight class?

If my life depended on it I could not name a one.

It died when UFC started.

 

[sealybobo]

It died when UFC started.

Great point. It sure did. Gracie, Shamrock, Tank Abbott, Kimbo, Brock Lesner. Soooo many great fighters and great fights. Boxing has gone the way of the horse races. LOL.

I'm sure boxing is still huge. The have HBO, Pay Per Views and Showtime right? And sometimes I see boxing on ESPN or one of my other sports channels.

But it's dead to me. The only way I will watch is if they put the guy on TV and he's undefeated and he really impresses me. Then MAYBE I'll want to see future pay per views.

The question is, who is worth you paying PPV prices? Which boxer today? No one. Tyson Fury maybe.

 

[katsteve2012]

The last fights/fighters that drew any significant mainstream attention over the last 20 years were

• Tyson vs Lennox Lewis
• Mayweather vs Manny Pac
• Connor McGregor vs Mayweather

Feel free to add if I missed any

Not at the level of those that you mentioned, however there was a fair amount of media coverage of the Tyson Fury- Deontay Wilder heavyweight bouts.

There was some decent action in those fights.

 

[sealybobo]

Not at the level of those that you mentioned, however there was a fair amount of media coverage of the Tyson Fury- Deontay Wilder heavyweight bouts.

There was some decent action in those fights.

And if the next sugar ray leonard or Mike Tyson is 10 and 0, we will find out about it and start watching him. Even ppv if he’s knocking people out.

I would never pay for a Floyd mayweather Jr fight. Or sweet pea pernell Whitaker.

 

[katsteve2012]

And if the next sugar ray leonard or Mike Tyson is 10 and 0, we will find out about it and start watching him. Even ppv if he’s knocking people out.

I would never pay for a Floyd mayweather Jr fight. Or sweet pea pernell Whitaker.

I've never been a Mayweather fan, and only watched him because I got the fights free, but Whitaker was OK.

You are correct, most fight fans want to see spectacular knockouts or a blood and guts war, like the Arturo Gatti- Mickey Ward fights.

Those were classics.

 

[sealybobo]

I've never been a Mayweather fan, but Whitaker was OK.

You are correct, most fight fans want to see spectacular knockouts or a blood and guts war, like the Arturo Gatti- Mickey Ward fights.

Those were classics.

MMA had to be a huge blow to boxing. It’s like what the internet did to newspapers and magazines. The smart newspapers figured out quickly how to go online.

I wonder if Don King promotes MMA fighters or is he still making newspapers.

 

[Mr. Friscus]

Not at the level of those that you mentioned, however there was a fair amount of media coverage of the Tyson Fury- Deontay Wilder heavyweight bouts.

There was some decent action in those fights.

As mentioned earlier, MMA has competed and at times pushed Boxing to the side. Also, the early 90’s split of different title belts was awful.

For boxing to get big again, it needs the next spectacle… a 6’2 jacked, prime specimen who completely dominates all fighters with knockouts in 1-2 rounds, and gets Tyson comparisons… and gets up to 15/20-0 record, people will want to see that

 

[katsteve2012]

MMA had to be a huge blow to boxing. It’s like what the internet did to newspapers and magazines. The smart newspapers figured out quickly how to go online.

I wonder if Don King promotes MMA fighters or is he still making newspapers.

Don King hasn't had the promotional rights to a top name fighter in quite awhile, and tried to venture into MMA promotions sometime ago, but didn't really get enough traction to be as dominant as he was in traditional boxing.
Probably because his well deserved reputation as a shyster who screws over fighters precedes him.

 

[sealybobo]

Don King hasn't had the promotional rights to a top name fighter in quite awhile, and tried to venture into MMA promotions sometime ago, but didn't really get enough traction to be as dominant as he was in traditional boxing.
Probably because his well deserved reputation as a shyster who screws over fighters precedes him.

Dana white for sure told him to get lost

 

[Mr. Friscus]

Dana white for sure told him to get lost

Boxing/MMA should continue occasional crossovers, like they did with McGregor and Mayweather

 

[luiza]

Boxing is a bit of a joke these days in the Land of the Fat Ones
Team GB and Cuba are the class acts .

The US are so USeless that Deontay Wilder lost every single round on one judges scorecard as he laboured like a novice against a Kiwi last night in Saudi .
The Saudis were booing and laughing at the inept American . Cries of Hamas rang round the venue

 

[katsteve2012]

Boxing is a bit of a joke these days in the Land of the Fat Ones
Team GB and Cuba are the class acts .

The US are so USeless that Deontay Wilder lost every single round on one judges scorecard as he laboured like a novice against a Kiwi last night in Saudi .
The Saudis were booing and laughing at the inept American . Cries of Hamas rang round the venue

Deontay Wilder hasn't been the same fighter since his fights with Tyson Fury. The only weapon left in his arsenal of punches is to hope to land a knockout punch, because he lacks the fundamental skills to outbox an opponent.

 

[lantern2814]

When the heavyweight division didn’t have a true larger than life champion. In older times, everybody (even non-boxing fans) knew who the heavyweight champ was. Foreman, Ali, Tyson, were all mainstream stars. Now the bigger stars are in the lighter weights, which usually don’t get the same amount of attention (though lately that’s starting to turn around).

 

[Fiero425]

When the heavyweight division didn’t have a true larger than life champion. In older times, everybody (even non-boxing fans) knew who the heavyweight champ was. Foreman, Ali, Tyson, were all mainstream stars. Now the bigger stars are in the lighter weights, which usually don’t get the same amount of attention (though lately that’s starting to turn around).

I haven't paid much attention to BOXING since Tyson bit off part of Holyfield's ear! It got comical at times w/ scoring controversies! Buster Douglas was supposedly losing his fight in Japan against Tyson before knocking out the champ! Then George Forman's comeback and subsequent reign as a bloated grandfather of 8 probably "did in" boxing for all time IMO! It couldn't be taken seriously; esp. in the Heavyweight Division! All this OTTH! Hope it made sense!