Boxing

[Doc_Piptorious]

Alex I am going to have to get my sausage gif out in a minute

[Nicey]

Pure pish from the pair of you.

Just because you're not a fan of the sport doesn't mean it's 'on it's arse'

There are some fantastic fighters out there and there are some fantastic fights in the next few weeks.

From your position of ignorance you're both spouting ****e as though it were fact. Stop it.

Ok well right, thats your take, my take is I know people in the sport of boxing, who are disillusioned with the sport of boxing, a referee and a worldclass trainer, both share the same opinion .. its ****ed ... I am most certainly ignorant regarding this sport but they are not. Who's watching boxing outside of this fight of the ages ... Boxing is almost a hipster sport ... thats about as damming as it gets

But hey ho we are allowed to have different takes, you obviously love the sport and thats very cool in my books

[Alex]

Alex I am going to have to get my sausage gif out in a minute

I get what you are saying, I really do. But as I said, I am way more causal than I used to be with following Boxing. Even UFC now to an extent since I got rid of BT Sport.

I just think that 1 ranking system is better than 5.

Mayweather v Pac this weekend wasnt done off rankings anyway, it was a money fight. Thats not exactly competitive either is it.

Both sports are about making money. So any ranks are going to be with that in mind too.

[Doc_Piptorious]

I get what you are saying, I really do. But as I said, I am way more causal than I used to be with following Boxing. Even UFC now to an extent since I got rid of BT Sport.

I just think that 1 ranking system is better than 5.

Mayweather v Pac this weekend wasnt done off rankings anyway, it was a money fight. Thats not exactly competitive either is it.

Both sports are about making money. So any ranks are going to be with that in mind too.

You have brought this on yourself

[spud_gun]

But hey ho we are allowed to have different takes, you obviously love the sport and thats very cool in my books

[Daniel 7]

Interestingly, given the Alex subject matter...

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2015/may/04/floyd-mayweather-manny-pacquiao-boxing-new-era

Floyd Mayweather’s decision to give up his world titles before his 49th and allegedly final fight in September is a devastating blow not just for Amir Khan, who was near the head of the queue as his opponent, but for the administrators who have been in charge of the sport for 30 years.

Mayweather did more than upset three of the four main world governing bodies when he announced his intention to surrender their baubles and say goodbye to boxing unencumbered by their sanction fees. He might yet fight Khan but his call adds only confusion to the process.

His statement – delivered in a low-key aside in the moments after beating Manny Pacquiao here on Saturday night to unify the WBA, WBC and WBO welterweight titles – constitutes the biggest challenge to professional boxing’s status quo in modern times. It could change the sport and the business forever. Whether it is for the better is too early to say.

Whatever happens in the coming weeks, Mayweather, 38 and weary, is not just vacating the titles to give other, younger fighters a chance, as he characterised it; he is giving his business partners, the obsessively private Al Haymon and the more publicly prominent Lou Ellerbe, the opportunity to build a new power base on free-to-air television, with new “world” titles under the name Premier Boxing Champions, contested exclusively by fighters signed to Haymon’s stable.

Haymon, whose brother Bobby fought Sugar Ray Leonard (as did Floyd’s father), is a Harvard-educated music promoter who travels incognito and has no office. He works so far behind the scenes he is invisible. The Ghost, as Mayweather calls him, is a playmaker like no other because he does not adhere to the accepted rules.

Khan is among nearly 100 fighters who have agreements with Haymon. Twice he has been close to fighting Mayweather, frustrated each time. Like the rest of them, he will not be concerned that Haymon is under attack from the Association of Boxing Commissions for an alleged conflict of interest under the Muhammad Ali Act for operating as a manager and promoter for some fighters.

His is a model built on Dana White’s UFC mixed martial arts format, a product that has also challenged mainstream boxing, although ratings have dipped recently. Le Journal de Montréal claims PBC is poised to replace the established rulers. “The PBC belts are in production in a company in England,” the paper says. “They would be ready in a few weeks, according to several [sources] but it is unclear when they will make their official appearance in the world of boxing.”

Haymon knows that fighters will fight for any belt offered, as long as they are getting paid. Fans will watch any fight, as long as it is competitive. The governing bodies will sanction any fight, as long as they are getting their fee. Television will screen any fight they think will draw enough clicks to satisfy advertisers or, at the top end, generate enough interest for pay-per-view.

At the heart of that forest of compromise for most of his 18-plus years as a professional has been the man who has made more money from boxing than any other, Floyd Mayweather. But he is done with the governing bodies now. They are of no further use to him. He has not yet chosen the opponent for his farewell appearance, and there will be no title at stake other than the kudos and cash that goes with sharing a ring with the self-proclaimed TBE.

Mayweather is not The Best Ever in the opinion of most informed observers. That crown is reserved for Sugar Ray Robinson, at welterweight as well as pound-for-pound. Nevertheless Mayweather is the best pure boxer of his generation and by some way the most influential individual in his sport.

Nobody has more clout in boxing than the fighter born into poverty and hardship in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and who has gone to amass more wealth than any single figure in the history of his sport.

On 11 March NBC broadcasted the first free-to-air boxing programme in the United States for 30 years, three decades when the sport shrank from view on subscription and pay-per-view outlets. It was a good but not outstanding bout, Keith Thurman – a possible challenger for Mayweather – outpointing Robert Guerrero, who was Mayweather’s last mandatory challenger, losing to him on points in May 2013.

That night Guerrero brought with him to the ring the interim WBC welterweight belt and Mayweather schooled him to turn it into the commission’s regular version – and herein lies the nub of boxing’s problems. All the four world governing bodies (an absurd concept in the first place) have so confused fans and even fighters with their multi-layered versions of titles as to render many “world” title fights meaningless.

The Guerrero fight was Mayweather’s first in a six-bout deal with Showtime, after 23 fights on the spin for HBO. That contract expires in September. It is the end of an era. Where Mayweather, Haymon and Ellerbe take boxing now nobody knows. But it will not be dull.

[Hollowman]

Who's watching boxing outside of this fight of the ages ... Boxing is almost a hipster sport ... thats about as damming as it gets

The Mayweather/Manny fight was obviously huge (so huge, in fact, that it's gate revenue was more than the last two years worth of gate revenue at UFC PPV events), but to claim it is the only fight in town is crazy.

On both sides of the Atlantic boxing is capable of selling out stadiums. Froch/Groves II sold 77k seats at Wembley and almost a million buys on Sky PPV. Canelo Alvarez sold 40k tickets for his fight with Trout (plus over 1m on Showtime), and has sold another 40k for his fight in Houston against Kirkland this week. Klitschko fought in front of 18k in the Garden the other week, almost twice as many as attended the UFC event the same night. HBO had almost 2m viewers. And he routinely sells out stadiums in Germany. Jesus, even Wilder got well over a million watching his fight with Stiverne.

The real decline in boxing has been in the use of PPV, but a good deal of the fights are shown in the States on premium cable anyway (Showtime or HBO), so the revenues are still there. Tighter organisation could bring back PPV-worthy cards, I suppose, but it's better for the viewers if there is less PPV, with promotions making their money on large live receipts and decent premium cable contracts.

[Shaggy]

Manny Pacquiao could be out of action for a year as he prepares to have surgery on his injured shoulder.

The 36-year-old blamed the injury for Saturday's points defeat by Floyd Mayweather, claiming it stopped him using his right hand during the bout.

Pacquiao's adviser, Michael Koncz, denied claims the Filipino's camp deliberately did not declare the injury to the Nevada Athletic Commission.

Surgeon Neal ElAttrache told ESPN that Pacquiao had a "significant tear".

He added the injury was likely to sideline the fighter for between nine and 12 months.

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum claimed Pacquiao injured his shoulder about two and a half weeks before Saturday's fight in Las Vegas.

Pacquiao said he wanted a pre-fight injection in the shoulder but the Nevada Athletic Commission refused.

Commission chairman Francisco Aguilar said he first knew about the injury two hours before the fight, when Pacquiao's camp requested an anti-inflammatory shot be administered.

Officials denied the request and Aguilar blamed Pacquiao for not disclosing his injury sooner.

Mayweather, 38, scored a unanimous points victory in the four-belt unification bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

The win extended the American's unbeaten record as a professional to 48 fights.

Pacquiao's surgery means any rematch is unlikely, with Mayweather insisting he will retire in September after one more fight.

Britain's Amir Khan says Mayweather's manager told him "let's get that fight on" after Saturday's bout.

[G]

FLOYD MAYWEATHER SAYS HE WILL FIGHT MANNY PACQUIAO AGAIN AND NO-ONE ON THE PLANET IS SURPRISED


A rematch. Who would have thought it?
So Manny Pacquiao went along the lines of claiming that he thought he had won the fight first. When that was too unbelievable, he pulled out the ol' shoulder injury classic.

And it looks to be working.

The money generated from The Fight of the Century - and not just from the Burger King king - was absolutely stupendous. But imagine you could double it...

When the fun stops, the gambling should stop and all that. But what if you were guaranteed crazy figures every time you stepped in the ring? It's not gambling and it's always fun.

And, despite saying that he was going to retire - again - Mayweather has apparently said he would be open to a rematch with Manny Pacquiao. Even after his planned 49th fight in September.

In a text to an ESPN reporter, Mayweather is supposed to have said, "I will fight him in a year after his surgery."

Pac Man is scheduled for surgery later this week, the MGM has plans to open a new MGM Grand Arena in April 2016... You do the maths.

That opening coincides with boxing legend's Rocky Marciano's retirement.

Marciano won 49 fights in an undefeated career.

By April next year, Mayweather should have done so, too.

He will then have the chance to better him with 50, on his own retirement day, in another Fight of the Century.

The stars are aligning. The cheque books are aflicking.

http://www.sportsjoe.ie/boxing/floyd-mayweather-says-he-will-fight-manny-pacquiao-again-and-no-one-on-the-planet-is-surprised/23622?utm_content=buffera2758&utm_medium=Social+organic&utm_source=Twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer

[Doc_Piptorious]

No thanks. Was too easy a win for there to be even whispers of a rematch.

[fidget]

No thanks. Was too easy a win for there to be even whispers of a rematch.

It's very handy for the 50-0 though

[Doc_Piptorious]

It's very handy for the 50-0 though

If he is that desperate for the 50, then I will dust off the gloves and meet him in a catch weight bout after he has spanked Khan.

[Nicey]

Gawd Dayum !!!!
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDM0Wl1WOiU"]Vonda Ward Vs. Ann Wolfe (Incredible Knockout) - YouTube[/ame]

[Doc_Piptorious]

Ann Wolfe has gone on to be a pretty good trainer in the ten or so years since that knock out

[Nicey]

Seriously ... just seen this today ... to day the other girl was leaving her chin out there is an understatement ..... but still ... sweet baby Jesus