Why a Saudi PUBLIC INVESTMENT FUND (PIF) take-over of boxing would be HORRENDOUS for the sport.

The idea that boxing might be beholden to any one private entity is so obviously horrific that it shouldn't even need explaining. Amusingly (and bemusingly), a lot of the support for a UFC model for boxing comes from those who espouse the "libertarianism" of free market economics, completely oblivious to the fact that totalitarianism has f*ck all to do with any permutation of capitalism. Do we really want the entire sport ruled by one man or a faceless board of executives, with fighters having to take crumbs from a banquet table? I don't, and if you do, you're bad for boxing.

[@nickhiggins9807]

It will be horrendous for the fighters, but not for the fans, just like the ufc the fans get what they want but they fighters don’t

[@melvinjones5975]

Great stuff Joe, Saudi put on some good shows but let’s not get ahead of ourselves and forget who these people are. People criticise boxing a lot for being not unified enough but of course your UFC analogy was bang on. Just about anybody can get a boxing license which means you get people like Fabio Wardely and Anthony Yarde who nobody has heard of but can turn over and make big money, there are no stories like that in UFC and some kind of Saudi Boxing League would put an end to it.

[@SaiSaiGre]

They're carrying on in the great tradition of using boxing as a laundry for dirty money

[@Bilts89]

The Saudis have no need to launder money pal

[@SaiSaiGre]

@@Bilts89 whatever u wanna believe coz u don't read so don't know how countries fund the destabilization of other countries for their own economic benefit bud

[@SK-kh2rs]

Lol what 😂

[@andyhall666]

Having been a boxing fan my whole life, the one thing I've always wished was different is that there is just one ruling body, and where fighters can't just pick their next opponents and fight for the next new belt created. You don't get that in any other sport. You don't get Man City saying pay us more to play a top team or we'll play Luton Town for a 3rd time. Sport should have a proper structure really if it's to be taken seriously.

[@joco2826]

Football teams can recover from a beating by another team. Boxers can’t always come back from getting battered by another boxer. Hence why your comparison is poor & why boxers must always retain the right to decide who they will or won’t fight if they don’t feel ready or if the money isn’t worth the risk to their health and career.

[@PatkaBoy831]

Boxing has never used that model. Its a terrible model.

[@owermetalgod666]

Glad someone is saying it, this is the one thing that worried me from the start of them coming in. MMAI did a brilliant video really breakingd own how a body like this (UFC) screws the fighters and unbalances the whole industry.

[@khaloood199]

In fact, they did this a long time ago, some football clubs in Europe were about to go bankrupt, and the sport was saved from Saudi support, and today we see them in boxing they pay more for the fights and zero taxes, and when you fight in Saudi Arabia, you get golden health insurance for life.that’s good deal 👍🏻

[@theflashvidschannel2606]

Absolutley fucking horrible idea - yes, it's great that the Saudis are putting on some great shows that we wouldn't have gotten otherwise, but boxing needs the grass roots and small hall shows too, and there's a world of boxing beyond the Heavyweights and big names. This shake 'n' vack fella might well be a genuine boxing fan, but let's not pretend much of this isn't a glorified sports-washing exercise to make Middle Eastern social, cultural, and religious norms either more palatable or promote a willingness to ignore/forget them altogether.

[@joelshulman8671]

Christ almighty, so refreshing to hear a take like this. The boxing media has gone nuts, I can’t believe anyone thinks total Saudi control would be a good idea. If you care about the fighters, you can’t support this move, simple as.

[@edarowan7388]

It's not the done thing as you said it's better for fighters to have options one dictator is not the answer

[@emcee6915]

It’s boxings own fault that something like this is being demanded by fans. The best not fighting the best and 173 active world champions in the sport across all weight divisions. It’s pathetic, there needs to be a clear structure for who is the best and they need to fight the top contenders.

[@joco2826]

You sound like the type of goon who would welcome a Saudi takeover

[@nickharmer3049]

I'm glad you've said this mate.! The double excellent Turki is good for boxing, but I'd hate to see him be the equivalent of Dana White & control the market. I hope the companies concerned don't take the 💰 & keep their autonomy.! Bless 👍

[@tobybartlett7777]

I’d like to see how they propose to work everything out, but my initial thought was it’s a Bad Idea because Absolute Power, Corrupts Absolutely, in my opinion! I’ve heard a few different things about it, like They’re gonna Buy Out All Major Promoters Out Right, Others say It’s a Minor Percentage of Them for Their Investment but Turki gets to Run The League! 🤔🤷‍♂️ So I’m a Bit Confused and it’s Too Much,Too Soon as Well, Getting the Promoters to work together is a Good Thing but let’s just see how this All Works before moving forward with an Irreversible Decision Boxing Doesn’t Want! 🤔🤷‍♂️

[@letitiamcculley9311]

I have been saying this is BAD< BAD< BAD for boxing from the onset. They tried to do it through BLKPrime and it fell flat on its face in the USA. The Kinahan Cartel and the Saudi's have been involved in many businesses together. Gym's, boxing,, UFC etc etc etc all of it. Do we really think that Turki is coming up with his picks for fights by himself ???? Please we did not come up the Clyde in a banana boat. This is awful for boxing. AWFUL.

[@GreedyBelly123]

Not to mention the 99% pure Saudi sniff on special order from Daniel, the shakes and Saudi royals love the sniff as much as the next man, get what you want in Saudi or Dubai

[@letitiamcculley9311]

@@GreedyBelly123 Yes and lets Launder the money through Saudi Boxing.Allegedly. This is a BAD BAD thing for boxing. All done with the Saudi smile,, you notice that lol Lets knot forget Turki and his Tyson be one of my favourites lol

[@roberthutchins3053]

Evening Joe . Great vid as usaul mate . Good to see you back to top health mate . Hows that ottaman bed coming along ? hope it went well mate .Kind regards Rob

[@joestunnerboxing]

Weirdly enough, I FINALLY put that damn bed together earlier today with the help of a generous friend who gave up her valuable time. Put all my t-shirts in it too. 😄

[@AlexCrighton]

I’ve been saying this. All people are talking about is how much the governing bodies ruin the sport. Yet no one is mentioning how they have the power to mandate purse bids and cut through promotional and network contracts to force commercial competition for fights. With a dictatorship, that goes away and everything outside of the monopoly becomes devalued.

[@GreedyBelly123]

Well said Joe, grest video yet agai, spot on mate

[@joestunnerboxing]

Cheers.

[@joemckeown2763]

Spot on as always Joe. People will look to the immediate benefits and as usual, completely miss the bigger picture. The whole thing makes me sick. Yes, we get Fury/Usyk etc. but look at the cost. Boxings problem is that it never looked after it's own interests, and this just a further extension of money-hungry parasites selling the sports soul out.

[@modernguitarist1992]

I agree with Joe. I have no problem with them making big fights (i welcome it) but i do not want boxing to be a monopoly. As a tourist, i would much rather tour the UK than anywhere in the middle east.

[@michaelthompson6885]

For me this possible situation is entirely the fault of the corrupt ruling bodies and certain promoters.

[@rickard.eriksson]

This is my view on it. Boxing is in disarray today; there is no effective bargaining. Perhaps only about ten boxers earn a really good pay, while the rest do not. Much of this is based on pay-per-view (PPV) numbers. The negotiations to bring in a fight are a mess. Currently, there is a top 15 ranking system with 200 boxers under the Public Investment Fund (PIF). You are not forced to sign the contract, but if you are one of the 200 boxers who gets a contract, it’s not going to be a UFC-level payout. The world titles are still up for grabs, but the money isn’t anywhere close to what PIF offers. Boxers are more likely to sign with PIF because the payout is significantly higher than an ordinary purse. They are not relying on PPV numbers, which I believe are around $75 at the moment. The problem with boxing today is that the money isn’t there. Dana White even tried to form a boxing league and said it’s not possible. I’ll paraphrase: "I love boxing; it’s my roots, but it’s a mess." He also stated there is no dictatorship in boxing; it’s a couple of promoters who can’t organize the fights the public wants to see and are willing to pay for. With the ranked system under PIF, you are compelled to fight. You can’t just face 30 out-of-rank boxers, wait for a belt to be vacant, and then become a world champion. Now, they will fight 2-4 times a year, and the top 15 will most likely all face each other. In Saudi Arabia, you have the best facilities, the best doctors, and the best accommodation. Maybe it’s time to acknowledge that boxing under Don King was the best era ever. Now, His Excellency Turki is poised to be the new Don King.

[@joco2826]

Dana’s Ball Licker in the comment section.

[@kraftwork01]

Do low level fighters get paid decent money now? PBC is one of thee worst things to ever happen boxing and has threatened the sport's existence in America. Fighters fighting once a year in uncompetitive fights, not stepping up competition until in their early 30s. I'd like to see you do a video weighing up the pros and cons, because this is a complex topic

[@Kieran-jq5kk]

I actually like the idea of a dictatorship in the sport, until the Saudis started throwing money around we were being starved of the fights we wanted to see for years. We missed out on some big fights that would have been made under such a system. A ufc type system, but with the athletes taking a share similar to other top sports, rather than the small percentage which ufc distribute to fighters might be perfect. The wrong side of the street narrative we suffered through over the last 5/10 years has been pony.

[@alastairfraser8177]

Monopolies are bad

[@gehehbeebhehehsh9484]

Im sick of the way the sport is now. There’s very few cards which I want to sit down and pay to watch for the evening: we’re getting em now. Don’t care about the rest. They should give the fans what we want now, but theees too many competing channels promotions etc

[@TobyNaraine]

Do we have any estimates on how much this would cost?

[@peternagy-im4be]

A right few quid geezer

[@TheAngrySportsfan01]

Im hoping its more like an overseeing bosrd that will get involved only for the big fight's that need big money. Otherwise its not the best idea the UFC model

[@DeeTeaDee]

….. well more like 2 or 3 cards 😆 Fury V Usyk 2 Joshua V Dubois Joyce V Hergovic Whyte V Wilder Bakolie V Anderson Kabayel V Parker Ruiz V Miller Zhang v Hunter Clarke V Wardley 2 H.Fury V Makhmudov Johnny Fisher V Moses Itauma Torrez Jr V Babic

[@Bilts89]

I understand what your saying here Joe and I respect your opinion but you are looking at it from a totally socialist point of view. I respectfully disagree, it would in fact be way better for the fans and way better for the sport of boxing. It wouldn’t however be better for the boxers but it would be good enough for them and maybe we wouldn’t have idiots asking for ridiculous purses and tax exemptions, the ufc model is a good one but they are just too greedy, if they shared the wealth more appropriate it would be better but these guys still making good money. Without doubt one umbrella would make boxing much more entertaining and better for the fans, of which we all are!

[@joestunnerboxing]

I entirely disagree, but thanks for your comments. 🥊🥊

[@Bilts89]

@@joestunnerboxing yeah but if you was so interested in the purses of the fighters you would purchase the ppv’s you can’t bat for both teams?

[@Bilts89]

@@joestunnerboxing the ufc model is undoubtedly amazing for the fans and that’s the reason it will take over boxing in popularity. I’m pretty sure they already make more money than every major boxing promoter combined right now and it will surely grow. The model is amazing although it clearly is a dictatorship, but if you chose the corrupt boxing governing bodies over this that to me seems insane. Boxing fans deserve so much better.

[@barbzch]

​@@Bilts89 In what world is it great viewing for the fans to see the UFCs p4p #1 step in as replacement a weight division up, on 1 weeks notice, and get flattened within minutes? There's a whole lot of corruption around UFC -I saw someone mention MMAIs video in the comments here, check that out. There's also an eerie air of sameness to the UFC 'product'. Half part McDonald's, the other half reality-tv show. Everything branded under one soulless brand. It's still-life.

[@joestunnerboxing]

PPV and whether punters pay it is not the issue - that's a different topic. We're talking about the power of fighters to negotiate - to have have choices and options, which they'd be denied under a system that'd make North Korea blush. As for UFC usurping boxing in terms of popularity, not a chance. When UFC and MMA in general have existed for 140 years as boxing has in its current form alone, then maybe that argument will hold a drop of water. Until then, not a chance.

[@ORIGINOLINDIVIDUAL]

The UFC from a fans prospective is easily the best model in the Combat World market. The best fight the best constantly. They could sell out an arena without even releasing a line up Since when do we (The Fans) care about what fighters ger paid ? I couldn’t care less what Fury & Usyk got paid or What CBS & Riakphore will get paid. I want to see the best fight the best

[@remonimodexd7116]

Yes but the fighters care and it matters to them. I doubt they’ll agree to this

[@joco2826]

Still waiting on Ngannou v Jones. You sound like a UFC cult boy.

[@ORIGINOLINDIVIDUAL]

@@joco2826 I have not watched a ufc event or fight in over 10 years, i’m a pure boxing fan.UFC does not have guys fight each other 10+years after their prime. boxing does