Here's why Saudi money RUINING BOXING?

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  • Опубликовано: 9 июл 2024
  • Record purses for male boxers
    Money was the biggest obstacle when then-world champions Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder failed to agree terms in 2018 or when Fury-Usyk negotiations in London stalled last year.
    But money has also provided the solution - with Saudi Arabia splashing enough cash to please all parties.
    Fury will reportedly earn £78m against Usyk while Joshua is said to have earned a staggering £39m against Francis Ngannou.
    It is not just the heavyweights who are benefiting. The postponed undisputed light-heavyweight contest between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol - a match-up which excites the sport’s hardened supporters - will be hosted in Saudi Arabia.
    Marquee fights are being made with fighters rewarded handsomely, but for all the optimism, female boxing is being neglected by the kingdom.
    Women’s rights are an ongoing issue in the country and although Briton Ramla Ali competed in Jeddah in 2022, there does not seem to be an appetite among Saudi bosses to host a female fight.
    June’s unprecedented five v five event in Riyadh - featuring rivals-turned-friends Frank Warren and Eddie Hearn pitted against each other - is the latest missed opportunity to offer at least two female fighters the same lucrative pay cheques as their male counterparts.
    ‘A true boxing fan’ - the influence of Alalshikh
    Turki Alalshikh shakes hands with Anthony Joshua
    IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES
    Image caption,
    Fury will fight back-to-back bouts in Riyadh while Joshua’s last two fights have also taken place in the city
    With a two-hour time difference in the summer, main events in Saudi are televised at a palatable time for UK audiences.
    “The beauty is that we no longer have to wait until four or five in the morning to watch a Las Vegas fight,” Warren tells BBC Sport.
    Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia's general entertainment authority, is the man credited for making it happen.
    Armed with the riches of his nation, Alalshikh convinced Warren and Hearn to bury the hatchet.
    The pair have co-promoted shows in the last six months, having reportedly never even spoken to each other before.
    “We’ve all seen, myself particularly, so many opportunities for the undisputed championship fall by the wayside over the years because the money wasn’t there or there were politics involved,” Matchroom's Hearn adds.
    But with so much control in the hands of one man, there is still uncertainty over what happens when Alalshikh - who Hearn describes as a “true boxing fan" - is no longer at the helm.
    ‘Soulless’ atmosphere but should we give it time?
    Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk pose for cameras at a news conference
    IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES
    Image caption,
    Alalshikh’s influence extends to easing rivalries between broadcasters too - Fury-Usyk will be shown simultaneously on TNT Sport, Dazn and Sky Sports in the UK
    Boxing in Saudi Arabia is starkly different to the pageantry of a Las Vegas fight week and lacks the lure of a London stadium showdown.
    Joshua’s ‘Day of Reckoning’ and ‘Knockout Chaos’ events did not seem to infiltrate the wider public in Riyadh.
    Taxi drivers, shopkeepers and hotel staff were generally unaware of any boxing taking place.
    Joshua has not been mobbed by fans at fight-week festivities, which Warren says is a sign of the “respectful” culture and why fighters enjoy competing there.
    Musicians Eminem and Kanye West and legendary fighters like Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson have attended fight weeks to add some stardust.
    But those watching on TV often describe the atmosphere as “soulless”. In March, the loudest roar of the night cam
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