The dark side of allowing YouTubers and Celebrities into the Pay Per View boxing world in collaborations to keep them safe is exposed.
WBN exclusively learned that a YouTuber participating in a Pay Per View contest got told there was no danger to them before a high-profile bout.
Fighting on a card that included professional fighters and charged on a paid platform, the vlogger in question thought he ‘would not be hurt’ during the match-up.
The shocking revelation opens the door to what could now be a world of opportunism. A movement that takes away pugilism’s true essence.
Having two boxers go toe-to-toe to see who the best man has long been the sport’s attraction. Now, a darker side has exploded with anyone bereft of natural talent able to compete.
CONVERSATIONS
WBN hearing that there are actual conversations between YouTuber’s representatives and those they oppose inside the ropes about the possibility of not being injured casts a shadow on exhibitions’ future.
It’s down heartening. It misses the brief of boxing.
A series of those such events continue to blight the sport. Several big names from the professional side lend their name to this mess.
If any such regular reoccurrence of what WBN understands has taken place, those bouts will undoubtedly lose die-hard fan confidence.
This new trend of lucrative exhibitions has already faced accusations of making money from a far lesser product than the pro ranks. Meanwhile, real boxers struggle to make ends meet on a day-to-day basis.
Making a multi-million-pound purse on the back of previous exciting bouts with the promise of similar using participants nowhere near the capability of doing so could be construed in a far less attractive way.
In a nutshell, it’s not in the same ballpark.
However, Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. smashed their way into the Pay Per View all-time top ten. Clearly, despite neither being anywhere near their best.
It begs the question, do those paying for Pay Per View’s offering older or less-skilled boxers care what they are paying for anyway? Does talent matter?
There are some tough questions to answer.
PAY PER VIEW DANGER
If an internet presenter can fight on a bill, make a sizeable paycheck, and walk away unscathed, it may not seem a bad thing to some.
But it sets a dangerous precedent for the future of the beloved viciousness in boxing – a downward spiral.
If the paying public is happier with a significantly diminished chance of injury, it could also favor those opposed to the sport.
A new era may be coming.
It’s long campaigned that boxing is too violent and far too brutal. Therefore, maybe this new era of WWE-style scriptedness will catch on?
Not for us, though. Give us blood, guts, and talent any day.
The views expressed in this article are the opinions of Phil Jay.
WBN Editor Phil has over ten years of boxing news experience. Follow WBN on Twitter @WorldBoxingNews.
