Discussion hour – I’m sure this will rattle a few cages but it will be great to hear everyone’s opinion…
Relentless argumements rage on Twitter between ‘Fans’ and ‘Boxers’ over who needs who, who’s opinion is valid or who’s worthy of giving criticism or praise.
Promoters sit in the background promoting the spin like politicians, knowing the old adage of no publicity is bad publicity and interest sells tickets!
So who is right? Who needs who?
The times I’ve heard Boxers say ‘ if you haven’t been in a ring then you can’t have an opinion of worth ‘
The truth is opinions make the sport, whether that be a positive or a negative one – without opinions there is no interest, without interest there are no spectators, and without spectators it’s just a fight and not a career!
The times I’ve heard Fans say ‘A fighter bottled it or has hand picked opponents ‘
Fans have a right to an opinion but they do not have the right to slander a boxer, whether that be for performance or personality. Fighters live a very regimented life and take their sport very seriously, stepping through the ropes regardless of opponent they are putting their lives on the line every time. They aren’t all paid well but aspire to reach the top tier to hit the big earnings – popularity is vital (Loved or Hated) and the media and fans are vital to that popularity. We live in a different world than the days you waited on a newspaper or a magazine to catch up on a fighter, we also live in a pay per view era were few fighters are household names to the common man – abuse and praise are readily available every minute of every day – the key is how they are managed. Fans need to think before they type!
Promoters love it – they stir the pot, spout the spin and create a buzz around the fighters and upcoming events.
Promotion has never been easier – instant interest from the touch of a phone. People are easily accessed and fights blown out of proportion without the legwork of past eras. Massive money incentives make boxing a lucrative profession for the elite and fans can be exploited readily via unrealistic pay per views – so is this wrong?
My view is boxing has never been so accessible, Promoters represent boxers and are looking to get them the best deal possible which is exactly how it should be – should that be at the expense of fans – No.
Quality fights equal evenly matched fighters for a title of note, that’s pay per view. Domestic fights, Non title events and One big fight in a show does not!
Promoters need to play fair with their product, fighters who choose to interact for publicity should expect criticism as well as praise, Fans need to follow the sport and fighters with passion and respect.
Summed up – without any one of these three there is no Sport….. All three add up to make it the wonderful spectacle we all love.