Oh, maybe not to the degree that it was in the 1970's and 1980's, but recent television agreements with major networks such as ESPN (Top Rank and to a far lesser extent Golden Boy) and Fox (PBC) have returned the sport to the "free" television tier along with Showtime (PBC) continuing to raise their boxing budget every year, the new streaming access with DAZN's (Matchroom) huge wallet and with whatever HBO (Golden Boy/Unaffiliated promoters) is doing to hang around in the game, to bring a level of exposure and interest that haven't been seen in a long time.
However, with that exposure that hopefully results in new fans and viewers comes the responsibility of acting like a legitimately run sport and there is where boxing has to be careful in just how far they push the line with a lack of responsibility.
Take, for example, the now-canceled bout that was the scheduled main event on FS1 on Sunday between long-time Zabbie contender Victor Ortiz and the fading former contender John Molina.
Molina has seen better days but showed in his last fight (a four round war against Ivan Redkach) that he can still be exciting if matched properly against a similar level of fighter.
Ortiz, for all his disappointments and inconsistencies, has proven to be that same level of fighter and even though the matchup was one of name value, if not one of solid current contenders, I was still looking forward to seeing the fight because for as long as it lasted, it should have been a "slobber knocker" as Jim Ross used to say on Mid-South Wrestling.
Then, with less than a week before the fight, Ortiz was accused of sexual assault from an incident in March- with the result being a canceled fight.
Putting aside guilt or innocence and any comment on the fight being canceled or Ortiz being allowed to fight ( it was a good idea to have Ortiz not do so under the conditions), but Molina misses out on a payday, the card now lacks the previous 'star power' and even though the card goes on and will be televised, the casual viewer will look through their "tv guide" and still see the names of Ortiz vs Molina and then be disappointed to see neither of the two in the ring.
While I'm sure that it was difficult to find an opponent on short notice at all, let alone with the reputation of Ortiz, boxing takes a hit again compared to the stick and ball sports.
On those schedules, one doesn't have to worry about the Chargers getting in legal problems and not being available to play the Chiefs, or their game being canceled or even the Chargers being replaced by a minor league team to battle the Chiefs on short notice.
Another battle that boxing faces with bout cancellation come with the increasing problems with fighters making weight.
This has always been and always will be somewhat of an issue as fighters struggle to make weight, but the change years ago to have weigh-ins the day before the fight has hurt fights being able to be completed.
The day of fight weigh-ins aren't perfect with what can result in weakened fighters, but the advantages to an extra day to make weight and not having that extra day for fighters to bulk up into what is sometimes two or even three divisions higher in weight is worth the change.
I know about the rules to protect the fighters safety, but I still think a fighter that struggled to make weight facing someone their own size is safer than one that struggled to an extra day to make the scale but will be facing a far bigger opponent than he signed to face.
Making weight was an issue in the past, but very rarely did fights get canceled.
Usually, the weight was made with the extra time and in the cases that a fighter didn't, a deal was made.
Deals are still made today, but with the fighter that was a professional and lived up to the contract at a disadvantage with the offending fighter being able to stay stronger, it is more often than not for the fighter that made weight to refuse the fight, especially with the emphasis on avoiding a loss in the game today.
Boxing has another issue dealing with weight- far too many weight classes.
Honestly, for all of the hits that boxing takes for having too many sanctioning bodies ( and they do), the bigger issue and problem for making the best fights are too many weight classes.
While boxing has outgrown its original eight weight classes, there are many classes that could easily be moved along without a loss to the game.
Between the four sanctioning bodies ( I could live with two, with unification preferred when possible) and the seventeen weight classes (that's right-SEVENTEEN!), it is far easier now for a champion when faced with a stern test from a mandatory contender, especially if said contender fights for another promoter, to simply toss their belt aside to move up a few pounds and quickly fight for another championship.
This is a tactic used most skillfully by a champion in the WBO's system with their rule that a champion of theirs moving up in weight, automatically becomes the number one contender in their new weight class.
The rampant epidemic of changing classes rather than cleaning one out before leaving one has resulted in numerous four and five division champions creating statistics that no one outside of the boxing game and few inside of it cares about.
Comparing the current situation to the highly anticipated challenge by Alexis Arguello against Aaron Pryor record-setting setting fourth division title and one can easily see how little the current achievements are usually regarded.
Vasyl Lomachenko is arguably the top boxer in the game today, has faced several top fighters and has ducked no challenges, but in only 12 professional fights, Lomachenko has already won three divisional championships, which shows not only that four sanctioning bodies in each weight class make titles easier to win, the available divisions make it easier as well.
I'll be writing a post soon on how I would correct the divisional problem although it would have no chance of being adopted.
The sanctioning bodies and their ridiculous 'secondary' titles (The WBA is the worst offender with it's Super, Regular and Interim titles, but the WBC's Silver title is another rotten one) are polluting the sport and this comes from someone that favors titles and believe that they are important for fighters and fans, but with boxing having the opportunity to bring fans back into the fold with increased exposure, boxing should grab that time to make things clearer for new followers and to make championships mean something again.
I'm not naive enough to think those groups will turn down these cash registers and change things, but
the time is still right for fans to look at someone and think there is the champion of the world- not wondering what he is the champion of and how many other champions there are.
In other words, our sport needs more professionalism from top to bottom- it comes with the territory when you want to be considered more than a niche' sport.
I'll have the boxing challenge later tonight with the World Boxing Super Series final between George Groves and Callum Smith being held on Friday afternoon in the Eastern U.S.
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