For a long time now we at Box Pro have been talking about the rise of mixed martial arts (MMA) and the future of boxing. Initially when UFC began to gain popularity, many promoters said that they weren’t concerned about it. They described it as the latest fad, and that it would never compete with boxing. I would say that UFC is now so far ahead of boxing, promoters have to learn from it and change the state of boxing before it’s too late.
These opinions have recently been shared by boxing promoter Barry Hearns (Lennox Lewis, Naseem Hamed) as he thinks the future of boxing is a big concern. MMA is attracting the younger audience and is much more accessible. Younger viewers might get bored watching 12 rounds of boxing but could easily watch 3 five minute rounds of MMA. This is proven with the latest box office statistics. The next UFC show in Birmingham has sold all of the available 10,000 tickets and is going to be screened on Setanta to over 150 countries. The show has broken Amir Khan’s box office record for his fight against Michael Gomez earlier in the year.
Hearns has started a new show called “Prize Fighter” which he says is a direct reaction to UFC. The show might not be for “boxing purists”, but is made more accessible by introducing 3 round fights in a tournament to the finish. The show focuses on entertainment and having a great night of fighting action.
Hearns says on the current state of boxing, “If you rip the fans off by putting poor fights on and over-protecting fighters, they won’t come back. Boxing promoters have got to move with the times. If you stick your head in the sand and say, ‘No, there’s nothing like a good old British title fight over 12 rounds’, but you don’t sell tickets and don’t get ratings, then you’re doing something wrong. And boxing’s been doing something wrong for some time.”
We believe that the format of boxing is one aspect, but you have to consider the whole package. Boxing is no longer marketed in the right way, and certainly doesn’t keep up with the times. Boxing needs to learn from UFC and bring the sport into the 21st Century.
