The world of boxing is changing, and the hard core do not like it. YouTubers fighting fellow celebs, MMA stars crossing over to the square ring and fight legends coming out of retirement.
The latest instalment in what most boxing experts see as a freak show came when YouTube sensation Jake Paul (aka ‘The Problem Child’) knocked out former MMA star Ben Askren inside a round in Atlanta on Saturday night.
More than 1.5million fans bought the pay-per-view according to Paul (via his social media accounts), generating around $75million in revenues. The number is set to rise further.
***UPDATE 1.5m PPV BUYS
— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) April 18, 2021
The whole thing is the brainchild of social platform Triller - similar in some ways to TikTok.
Triller really hit the headlines for the first time late in 2020 when Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr fought to a draw in an exhibition in California.
The Tyson vs Jones Jr PPV on Triller Fight Club - which also featured Jake Paul knocking out former NBA star Nate Robinson on the undercard - drew an astonishing 1.6million buys.
To put that into context, the Tyson Fury vs Deontay Wilder 2 rematch - with the might of FOX and ESPN behind it - drew only 800k buys some nine months earlier.
Triller ruffling boxing feathers
Triller then made even bigger waves in the core boxing community by blowing Bob Arum’s Top Rank and Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom out of the water in purse bids for Teofimo Lopez’s upcoming lightweight title defence against George Kambosos Jr.
Then came Saturday, with Jake Paul topping the bill against former UFC star Askren. An Askren not known for his ability to punch, and two years out from MMA retirement due to a serious hip problem.
The main event didn’t last long, as a flabby-looking Askren was decked heavily inside a round.
The undercard featured a proper boxing match - Regis Prograis vs Ivan Redkach. But even that ended in freak circumstances with Redkach stretchered out after being hit legitimately in the mid-section.
Calling the fights wasn’t somebody like HBO great Jim Lampley either - it was Snoop Dogg. Complete with a liberal sprinkling of F and MF bombs.
Then Triller threw in a musical interlude too - this time with Justin Bieber supporting the event.
The Triller experience may not be everybody’s cup of tea, but it perhaps does illustrate the need for the sport of boxing to evolve in some ways. It is clearly an attempt to play to a new breed of fan. And so far it appears to be working.
Apart from Lopez, there is plenty more of this to come - the story is far from over.
Tyson vs Holyfield 3 in 2021?
Evander Holyfield returns to the ring in June against Kevin McBride, while Oscar De La Hoya also makes a comeback a month later (opponent yet to be confirmed).
Then, later in the year, we expect Tyson vs Holyfeld 3, 24 years on from the infamous ‘Bite Night’ in Las Vegas.
And finally, what next for Jake Paul? He calls out anybody and everybody but right now Tommy Fury is the flavour of the month. He even suggested Tyson Fury on the undercard.
That is the extent of it - world champion boxers fighting on undercards with celebs topping the bill - we’ve already seen it with Billy Joe Saunders playing second fiddle to Logan Paul vs KSI II at Staples Center.
The next few months should be fascinating. Will it be a fad that fizzles out as quickly as it took off? Or is it here to stay and will boxing make changes to counter it?
So far the numbers are impressive. Watch this space.
