Boxing is the current casual viewer landscape

Thought I would start a thread about how people around you perceive boxing.

For me all I do is work pretty much, so my coworkers are my only gauge. Most watch football religiously (American rules) and MMA, a few watch hockey, a few watch golf, one watches baseball.

ALL of them USED to watch boxing.

One of my coworkers today was surprised to learn that Vitali Klitschko had a brother that also was a professional boxer. The names David Haye, Valuev, Povetkin etc. call for blank stares and a mandatory youtube session. It's funny to me that more people here recognize John Ruiz (for his RJJ fight and Tua KO) than any of these other names.

I've found that people who say "I love boxing" means they love Tyson and have never watched a fight below heavyweight.

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Originally Posted by Fenster

I've found that people who say "I love boxing" means they love Tyson and have never watched a fight below heavyweight.

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Yeah over here, you can catch a Tyson fight almost every day of the week.

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Originally Posted by Fenster

I've found that people who say "I love boxing" means they love Tyson and have never watched a fight below heavyweight.

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Tyson Fury? Didn't know he was that popular over there.:p

I know a lot of people who watch it when it is a big event and quite a couple who are following it and have a very decent knowledge about the sport, Boxing is getting very very popular in Quebec, especially around Montreal and I have a couple of friends who are giving it an interested eyes, I would say that the real boom started like 5-6 years ago and the wave's still pretty strong around here.

At work i have one guy who watches a lot of fights like myself. Not too many people into boxing, or any that have any real knowledge. So if i want to talk boxing i talk to him or my wifes cousin, who i've been to a few fights with. Hell my wife knows more about boxing than my co-workers.

I've managed to drag most of my good mates into boxing with me, so I'll tell them which fights to watch (big ones) and most watch the domestic cards.

Work mates though, despite saying "I like boxing" couldn't name any more than the most obvious legends or current UK A-listers.

My friends and I are boxing fans so it's a good situation in that aspect. Most people from my work follow boxing as well. A good amount of them are Mexican so they are big on it. Actually, every person I've encountered in this area know a good amount about boxing or follow it in some way.

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Originally Posted by Nameless

I know a lot of people who watch it when it is a big event and quite a couple who are following it and have a very decent knowledge about the sport, Boxing is getting very very popular in Quebec, especially around Montreal and I have a couple of friends who are giving it an interested eyes, I would start that the real boom started like 5-6 years ago and the wave's still pretty strong around here.

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yup this is true...and for Ontario also, although not as strong as Que. (I do feel the need to correct a statement made a while back from you about for our recent medal grabs at nationals tho...as we did beat you guys :cool: )

No matter what province it is though, ON or Que, the interest is at an exponentially growing high, as are the number of new people walking through the gym doors to take it up as result of it. Expect big things down the road and lots of new names in the next 10 years.

Casual fans know Amir, Hatton, Galzaghe and Haye. Maybe Audley but that is probably all.

Don't really have any friends that are into boxing and most think I'm f*ckin lame when I stay home on a saturday night to watch some fight. Most everyone knows the name mayweather, pac and odl yet really most have never seen a fight of theirs. A few people know the klitschkos,pavlik. However mention the names marquez, bradley, katsidis and all you would get is blank stares. A few friends are big time into mma and have been at their house a few times to watch the big ufc cards, and usually they only like the fights where a dude gets knocked out, and I'm like you'd get a lot more of that in boxing. Boxing in recent years just has been marketed all wrong and espn rarely reports on it so it doesn't help the cause.

Out here theres a certain mentality amounst casual fight viewers, In pubs many are either after watching someone get ktfo in a heavyweight match or they are flag waving cause a localAussie is going for some two bit world belt.

I like to go to the RSL's Returned Services Leagues to watch fights that are bought in, because you get better real conversations with much older fans.

Trouble is two of the older ones i used to go with,both ex pros, are now dead and the others havent got it in them any more through health issues.

Have a couple who try and know some names. Seems at least once every couple of weeks I get some guy in the coffee shop asking "So Tyson huh...think he comes back as champ again" :cwm3: I once wanted to smack them...but now I say "HELL YEAH, If I were you I'd bet all I had on that happening"

The absolute worst is sitting with crowd watching fight and always some knob screaming "Just hit him". Never fails. By the 5th round they are playing with the cat or talking about how much they liked Tyson.

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Originally Posted by Fenster

I've found that people who say "I love boxing" means they love Tyson and have never watched a fight below heavyweight.

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That was probably me until about 2003 ;D

None of my friends are Boxing fans. Although most of them would pay to watch Hatton, Calzaghe, Khan, Mayweather or Pacquiao fight.
But they all view the sport (as a whole) like a music genre that is old but is always still searching for that next big hit that unfortunately very really fails to deliver.

Kinda like going from Techno of the early 90's to Moby of today :( :mad:

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Originally Posted by Youngblood

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Originally Posted by Nameless

I know a lot of people who watch it when it is a big event and quite a couple who are following it and have a very decent knowledge about the sport, Boxing is getting very very popular in Quebec, especially around Montreal and I have a couple of friends who are giving it an interested eyes, I would start that the real boom started like 5-6 years ago and the wave's still pretty strong around here.

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yup this is true...and for Ontario also, although not as strong as Que. (I do feel the need to correct a statement made a while back from you about for our recent medal grabs at nationals tho...as we did beat you guys :cool: )

No matter what province it is though, ON or Que, the interest is at an exponentially growing high, as are the number of new people walking through the gym doors to take it up as result of it. Expect big things down the road and lots of new names in the next 10 years.

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Did I said once that Quebec is winning most of it on the national level? If so I really don't recall. Beside, I am not much of a big patriot as you probably did notice it, normally I'll only vote for the guys from Quebec if they are not arsse (otherwise fuck the frenchie thing) because "they come from here" and you can bet on it that I'll cheer for you no matter which frenchie you're fighting :D
But yeah, Boxing is huge in Quebec, probably the province where it's the biggest in Canada and with the great matches that are starting to happen here, Montreal is getting like one of the boxing's mecca, which is very good. Ontario starts to develop fairly well too, Steve Molitor has been a very good figure over here to foster the interest and I think that it's a great thing

I remember gatti and lewis would not fight in Canada because the tax was high but Montreal is where it is all happening at the moment. What has changed?

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Originally Posted by Master

I remember gatti and lewis would not fight in Canada because the tax was high but Montreal is where it is all happening at the moment. What has changed?

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I can't answer that as not sure. But I suspect that the UFC may have even helped promote the fighting arts with GSP. And then having up and comers in boxing like Bute, Pascal, Lemieux, the people there promoting them well...people have just caught an interest.

total guess tho.

Being in the military I work with lots of 18-24 yr olds...It is rare that they can name one current world champion outside of Mayweather

It's pretty popular in the UK, a few of my friends know it well.

Same really.

I remember when Calzaghe was about to fight Lacy and this bloke at work went 'Calzaghe's going to get knocked out', to which i responded 'How many Jeff Lacy fights have you seen?' The answer was 0. ;D

I tend to watch fights with my old man. Only have 1 mate who's proper into it. Have a few more who are trying though. But prefer watching fights with my Dad.

If you want to see why in boxing things struggle, is because it seems to take a while to builld a reputation in boxing and then even longer to fight the best.

The super six is an indication.

THAT is how hard it is to get the best of the division to fight each other consistently every few months.

The thing is MMA has more of a "quick fix" people can fall in love with a fighter on the up and coming and you can follow their career with an organization, and they build a reputation a lot faster and the fan feels more inclined to follow them.

What boxing needs to do is start re-marketing itself, because right now it's sort of promoting itself like the old school sport, not the MUST SEE sport. And the MUST SEE sport is what the casual viewer is into, the viewer wants to know "Why do I want to see this?" And if they don't feel inclined to, then they won't.

Boxing needs more people in it that capture the imagination of audiences and has done a terrible job marketing their people as of late.

Let's face it, once Pacquiao, and Mayweather retire, boxing is going to be screwed, because they aren't really spending time building new stars. There is no other real "stars" that have crossover appeal that can be translated to boxing right now.

Boxing needs to do a better job of marketing more fighters, since the good ones now are sort of around the same era within themselves and not one is being pushed as the "person to watch" which is what boxing needs right now. It's promoted like the "old lion" so the casual fan is going to feel like, why get into it? For more than one or two fighters.

Whats killing boxing is, the lack of big fights, and the lack of good marketing. If boxing spent marketing time on young talent and built them up in shows like the contender but it was sponsored on a TV station like HBO or like Showtime or something, that lead to a national TV fight between the two winners then it may turn into something, boxing needs to market its young stars as the future and put these guys against each other on national TV. Not let them all build their reputations off camera and then put them on TV like "care about this guy" the only people that will are those that followed them or hardcore boxing fans that follow everything. But the casual guy won't go out and research something, they need it put in front of them. And that's what needs to happen.

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Originally Posted by Majesty

If you want to see why in boxing things struggle, is because it seems to take a while to builld a reputation in boxing and then even longer to fight the best.

The super six is an indication.

THAT is how hard it is to get the best of the division to fight each other consistently every few months.

The thing is MMA has more of a "quick fix" people can fall in love with a fighter on the up and coming and you can follow their career with an organization, and they build a reputation a lot faster and the fan feels more inclined to follow them.

What boxing needs to do is start re-marketing itself, because right now it's sort of promoting itself like the old school sport, not the MUST SEE sport. And the MUST SEE sport is what the casual viewer is into, the viewer wants to know "Why do I want to see this?" And if they don't feel inclined to, then they won't.

Boxing needs more people in it that capture the imagination of audiences and has done a terrible job marketing their people as of late.

Let's face it, once Pacquiao, and Mayweather retire, boxing is going to be screwed, because they aren't really spending time building new stars. There is no other real "stars" that have crossover appeal that can be translated to boxing right now.

Boxing needs to do a better job of marketing more fighters, since the good ones now are sort of around the same era within themselves and not one is being pushed as the "person to watch" which is what boxing needs right now. It's promoted like the "old lion" so the casual fan is going to feel like, why get into it? For more than one or two fighters.

Whats killing boxing is, the lack of big fights, and the lack of good marketing. If boxing spent marketing time on young talent and built them up in shows like the contender but it was sponsored on a TV station like HBO or like Showtime or something, that lead to a national TV fight between the two winners then it may turn into something, boxing needs to market its young stars as the future and put these guys against each other on national TV. Not let them all build their reputations off camera and then put them on TV like "care about this guy" the only people that will are those that followed them or hardcore boxing fans that follow everything. But the casual guy won't go out and research something, they need it put in front of them. And that's what needs to happen.

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How much do your friends know about boxing?

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Originally Posted by killersheep

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Majesty

If you want to see why in boxing things struggle, is because it seems to take a while to builld a reputation in boxing and then even longer to fight the best.

The super six is an indication.

THAT is how hard it is to get the best of the division to fight each other consistently every few months.

The thing is MMA has more of a "quick fix" people can fall in love with a fighter on the up and coming and you can follow their career with an organization, and they build a reputation a lot faster and the fan feels more inclined to follow them.

What boxing needs to do is start re-marketing itself, because right now it's sort of promoting itself like the old school sport, not the MUST SEE sport. And the MUST SEE sport is what the casual viewer is into, the viewer wants to know "Why do I want to see this?" And if they don't feel inclined to, then they won't.

Boxing needs more people in it that capture the imagination of audiences and has done a terrible job marketing their people as of late.

Let's face it, once Pacquiao, and Mayweather retire, boxing is going to be screwed, because they aren't really spending time building new stars. There is no other real "stars" that have crossover appeal that can be translated to boxing right now.

Boxing needs to do a better job of marketing more fighters, since the good ones now are sort of around the same era within themselves and not one is being pushed as the "person to watch" which is what boxing needs right now. It's promoted like the "old lion" so the casual fan is going to feel like, why get into it? For more than one or two fighters.

Whats killing boxing is, the lack of big fights, and the lack of good marketing. If boxing spent marketing time on young talent and built them up in shows like the contender but it was sponsored on a TV station like HBO or like Showtime or something, that lead to a national TV fight between the two winners then it may turn into something, boxing needs to market its young stars as the future and put these guys against each other on national TV. Not let them all build their reputations off camera and then put them on TV like "care about this guy" the only people that will are those that followed them or hardcore boxing fans that follow everything. But the casual guy won't go out and research something, they need it put in front of them. And that's what needs to happen.

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How much do your friends know about boxing?

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Not much cause my friends are in graduate school with me so I havent been "hanging with the boys" for a while. But mainly what the people I go to school with talk about is either Pacquiao or Mayweather, and the super six occasionally. But mainly they talk MMA and wrestling. But I mention names like Paul Williams and Sergio Martinez and i get blank stares, but they know who Andre Berto is at least.