It was interesting to read and watch the hype surrounding the David Haye and Audley Harrison boxing fight, which ended in a third round victory for Haye. Boxing nowadays is a question of how it can adapt to a world that remembers its glorious and historical past. If we are being honest then the match last night was a contest between a second-rate champion and fourth-rate opponent. Long gone are the days of Ali vs. Liston or even of late, Tyson vs. Holyfield.
The attractions to the game are still part of modern-day boxing, the pugilism, the alpha male and survival instincts; this is why people still get excited over the big clashes and why people are willing to spend big money to watch. In terms of intensity, nothing can come close to the sheer athleticism and punishment the athletes go through to become fit. There are numerous examples of fighters who have suffered as a result of their fights; but this isn't why the sport has stagnated. There is an element of risk in all high-impact sports and the high-pressure of certain events can drive other competitors to the edge. Boxing has suffered because its original talent-pool now has different avenues to choose from. In America, there is basketball and for the rest of the world, football is king. Boxing matches used to define decades, yet we are now seeing fewer and fewer.
Boxing, most recently,has struggled to compete with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), but I would argue there is no comparison as a spectacle both technically and athletically. Boxing has fallen behind in the marketing stakes and heavily relies on the big bouts, which are becoming thin on the ground; hence Haye versus Harrison. Boxing produced show men like Ali, Tyson and Sugar Ray, who all caught the gaze of the public; but for their athleticism and grace, not the hyperbole of weigh-ins and media chat. Boxing is not a dying sport and certainly fighters have defined it before and can define it again. I don’t think any sport could compete with the prospect of Haye vs. The Klitschko or Mayweather vs. Pacquiao. I would certainly pay to see it.
The attractions to the game are still part of modern-day boxing, the pugilism, the alpha male and survival instincts; this is why people still get excited over the big clashes and why people are willing to spend big money to watch. In terms of intensity, nothing can come close to the sheer athleticism and punishment the athletes go through to become fit. There are numerous examples of fighters who have suffered as a result of their fights; but this isn't why the sport has stagnated. There is an element of risk in all high-impact sports and the high-pressure of certain events can drive other competitors to the edge. Boxing has suffered because its original talent-pool now has different avenues to choose from. In America, there is basketball and for the rest of the world, football is king. Boxing matches used to define decades, yet we are now seeing fewer and fewer.
Boxing, most recently,has struggled to compete with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), but I would argue there is no comparison as a spectacle both technically and athletically. Boxing has fallen behind in the marketing stakes and heavily relies on the big bouts, which are becoming thin on the ground; hence Haye versus Harrison. Boxing produced show men like Ali, Tyson and Sugar Ray, who all caught the gaze of the public; but for their athleticism and grace, not the hyperbole of weigh-ins and media chat. Boxing is not a dying sport and certainly fighters have defined it before and can define it again. I don’t think any sport could compete with the prospect of Haye vs. The Klitschko or Mayweather vs. Pacquiao. I would certainly pay to see it.
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