Do you make an effort to create *new* boxing fans...?

[Mars_ax]

Boxing has it's casual and hardcore fans, the casuals come and go, but us hardcore fans stick it out to the bitter end. My dad was a boxing fan, which is how I became one, i've been hooked ever since. I would imagine the major boxing networks here in the States, (HBO, Showtime, Top Rank, ESPN, et al, do the best job of promoting the sport, along with 100's of boxing forums like this one.

[Majesty]

Not really. Haven't been following boxing very much lately, just hasn't done it for me lately. It's more so the fact that there's no.. there's no real connection with the fans it seems anymore. Boxing to me is getting to the point of being the way I feel about soccer, if its important, otherwise slim chance. Basically because boxing has gotten to the point where they don't even really attempt to make you 'care' about other boxers anymore that aren't mainstream.

It's because of how they are portrayed in the mainstream media and how when they are bashed they don't defend.

Funny story, I was watching ESPN the other day which is basically the most watched sports channel in the US so this is where a lot of a casual fans can come in and can be brought in to tune into something to fall in love with boxing maybe and, they talked about the Pacquiao vs Bradley fight.

I heard these boxing "analysts" or "journalists" that are supposed to have some stature, complain for 2 straight minutes about how Pacquiao and Mayweather aren't fighting, and basically refer to Timothy Bradley as a nobody and a bum, a lot of "who is he?s" and stuff thrown around.

It was at that point I realized where boxing truly is.. if people don't take the time to actually follow it, and look at it and realize it, they will actually buy that crap.

The casual boxing fan that watches ESPN and walks around thinking Tim Bradley is a bum just because his name isn't Pacquiao or Mayweather is sickening to me, and I may be conceited but I cringe at the thought of that kind of ignorance around the sport

To me it just..it pains me to see that it's gotten to this point. Where analysts and sports channels INTENTIONALLY try to make the casual boxing fan, not care at all whatsoever about a fight unless THEY say it's important. And the sad thing is that a majority of boxing fans that go to fights NOW and fill up the arenas buy into that crap.

I should have seen it years ago, when a Unification bout between Bradley and Alexander couldn't sell out an arena. It's a sad state, but honestly, at this point in boxing, the belts, mean absolutely nothing, I mean we say the belts mean nothing and we should have one unified recognized champion but honestly, it's beyond that, no one cares about title fights anymore, the lore of a boxing championship means absolutely nothing anymore.

Two of the best 135 pounders in the world could fight tomorrow in a unification bout to unify all the titles and make one super champion, and the Arena would be half full if ESPN said it didn't mean anything or didn't mention it at all. WE as real boxing fans yeah we'd go, we'd watch it, we'd tune in... but as the emptier the arenas get outside of a fighters hometown it's not hard to fathom why "stars" are rare to come by and find. But these "stars" have a tendency to outshine everything and everyone else trying to make a living coming up and it's a darn shame.

So, really, if these are the kind of fans that are around nowadays, I'm not going to try, to waste my energy or time trying to make them understand all the things that make boxing great or what fights they should tune into. Because all I hear a mainstream fan tell me when I try to explain to them who Andre Ward who is a local fighter out here in the bay area, Super Middleweight Champ is and they go on to tell me "I don't know who that is but if he(super middleweight andre ward) ever fought Pacquiao(welterweight at most naturally) he'd get knocked out." I just... I'm just done with it to be honest. When it comes to these new flavor of the month "fans".

Boxing has it's casual and hardcore fans, the casuals come and go, but us hardcore fans stick it out to the bitter end. My dad was a boxing fan, which is how I became one, i've been hooked ever since. I would imagine the major boxing networks here in the States, (HBO, Showtime, Top Rank, ESPN, et al, do the best job of promoting the sport, along with 100's of boxing forums like this one.

And sadly the Casual fans are what is going to keep boxing in business... us hardcore fans are a small small bunch and it's a sad reality.

[Mars_ax]

I just... I'm just done with it to be honest. When it comes to these new flavor of the month "fans".

Boxing has it's casual and hardcore fans, the casuals come and go, but us hardcore fans stick it out to the bitter end. My dad was a boxing fan, which is how I became one, i've been hooked ever since. I would imagine the major boxing networks here in the States, (HBO, Showtime, Top Rank, ESPN, et al, do the best job of promoting the sport, along with 100's of boxing forums like this one.

And sadly the Casual fans are what is going to keep boxing in business... us hardcore fans are a small small bunch and it's a sad reality.

A lot of the casual fans are fanboys who only follow one or 2 big name fighters, like Floyd, Pac, et al. They aren't really fans of boxing, they just idolize celebrities. But yeah, I agree these are the fans who buy the PPV's and keep boxing going.

[Dia bando]

I just... I'm just done with it to be honest. When it comes to these new flavor of the month "fans".

Boxing has it's casual and hardcore fans, the casuals come and go, but us hardcore fans stick it out to the bitter end. My dad was a boxing fan, which is how I became one, i've been hooked ever since. I would imagine the major boxing networks here in the States, (HBO, Showtime, Top Rank, ESPN, et al, do the best job of promoting the sport, along with 100's of boxing forums like this one.

And sadly the Casual fans are what is going to keep boxing in business... us hardcore fans are a small small bunch and it's a sad reality.

A lot of the casual fans are fanboys who only follow one or 2 big name fighters, like Floyd, Pac, et al. They aren't really fans of boxing, they just idolize celebrities. But yeah, I agree these are the fans who buy the PPV's and keep boxing going.

I agree about casual fan's boxing or any sport needs these people casual today hardcore tomorrow
you have to start somewhere.

[Slim the BoxingManiac]

I agree with you guys above. You can't get someone into boxing you can introduce them to the sport, if someone is interested they'll become a fan themselves.

Exactly this. Having been on both sides of the fence I can say this is true.

I hated boxing and remember how offended I used to get when a couple of my friends would stay in on fight night instead of coming out on the pull at some lame club.."You'd rather stay home and watch 2 half naked men fight??", was the dumb response I gave them..(ahh to be young and dumb!)

I was introduced to the sport by a guy called Marshall (trainer at Angel amateur boxing club) when I was a Personal Trainer at Virgin Active. His passion for the sport was so infectious..he did pads with me which I loved and then I just researched to high heaven about boxing.

I'd say within a month or two I was more knowledgable than the two friends who were supposed to be hardcore fans. I was telling them about fighters they had never even heard of.

So I can tell you from experience. I hated boxing until the age of 22 - from then on I've been in love with it. The change can happen!

Bullshit. I have a hard time believe that you're over the age of 16 at the moment.

[Saddo]

...by hosting a group to watch a fight and inviting people that are curious or don't know anything about the sport?

...what other things do you do to help along a new / potentially new fan?

Fuck no. Ain't my job to get people into it. If anything the stupidity of some of there questions makes me want to choke them out.

Why he wearing yellow gloves and not red like everybody else?

Cuz he wants to. No rule says they have to be red.

But there yellow. Why he pick yellow?

What difference does it make? There fucking gloves

Well I don't like yellow. And i hope he loses

I doubt he cares. And he ain't losing

OMG he's wearing yellow shorts too

Get out. Get the fuck out bitch.

funny stuff hahahahhaha

[Althugz]

I agree with you guys above. You can't get someone into boxing you can introduce them to the sport, if someone is interested they'll become a fan themselves.

Exactly this. Having been on both sides of the fence I can say this is true.

I hated boxing and remember how offended I used to get when a couple of my friends would stay in on fight night instead of coming out on the pull at some lame club.."You'd rather stay home and watch 2 half naked men fight??", was the dumb response I gave them..(ahh to be young and dumb!)

I was introduced to the sport by a guy called Marshall (trainer at Angel amateur boxing club) when I was a Personal Trainer at Virgin Active. His passion for the sport was so infectious..he did pads with me which I loved and then I just researched to high heaven about boxing.

I'd say within a month or two I was more knowledgable than the two friends who were supposed to be hardcore fans. I was telling them about fighters they had never even heard of.

So I can tell you from experience. I hated boxing until the age of 22 - from then on I've been in love with it. The change can happen!

Bullshit. I have a hard time believe that you're over the age of 16 at the moment.

Don't you have another boxing match you should be filming out in the trailer park with your buddies?

[Mars_ax]

I've followed boxing since I was a kid, my father used to talk about Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano and back then you could watch highlights of Marciano's fights before they showed a movie at the local theater. Being the HW Champion really used to mean something back then, Marciano was looked up to like a hero, and you'd never hear Rocky trash talking his opponent.
I grew up watching Louis, Marciano Archie Moore, Patterson, Liston, SRR, Ali/Clay and many others. There hasn't been a year that's gone by in the last 40, that I haven't watched most of the best fights going on at the time.

I'm not saying i'm any kind of expert, still just a fan, but I do believe I qualify as "hardcore".

[Mark TKO]

The only fighters I would try get people interested in are Tyson Fury and Chris Eubank jr who fight on terrestrial tv - to be fair quite a few nonboxing fans have surprised me by saying they tuned into a Fury fight (guess its better than most Saturday night shite tv - and he is entertaning)

No point with anyone else as they're all shown on subscription channels - and lets face it the majority of fight fans now don't have access to them all. Whats point in trying to get someone interested in something they aren't going to see ??

[Manos de Piedra]

I've followed boxing since I was a kid, my father used to talk about Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano and back then you could watch highlights of Marciano's fights before they showed a movie at the local theater. Being the HW Champion really used to mean something back then, Marciano was looked up to like a hero, and you'd never hear Rocky trash talking his opponent.
I grew up watching Louis, Marciano Archie Moore, Patterson, Liston, SRR, Ali/Clay and many others. There hasn't been a year that's gone by in the last 40, that I haven't watched most of the best fights going on at the time.

I'm not saying i'm any kind of expert, still just a fan, but I do believe I qualify as "hardcore".

That is a damn good line up of fighters there.

[boozeboxer]

...by hosting a group to watch a fight and inviting people that are curious or don't know anything about the sport?

...what other things do you do to help along a new / potentially new fan?

Fuck no. Ain't my job to get people into it. If anything the stupidity of some of there questions makes me want to choke them out.

Why he wearing yellow gloves and not red like everybody else?

Cuz he wants to. No rule says they have to be red.

But there yellow. Why he pick yellow?

What difference does it make? There fucking gloves

Well I don't like yellow. And i hope he loses

I doubt he cares. And he ain't losing

OMG he's wearing yellow shorts too

Get out. Get the fuck out bitch.

Sounds like VD's weekend with the kids.

[ruthless rocco]

boxing's like anal... some people love it but most find it painful, uncomfortable and dirty.

so...you only try to get someone to like it once or twice. if they love it you'll have a special friend for life!

any more than that and you're gonna get annoying.

[boozeboxer]

I don't think there is enough access to good boxing matches to keep even myself interested hardcore in the sport. By this I mean every day looking over matches, outcomes, projections, in comparison to other sports which often have great matchups scheduled that actually occur when they where scheduled.

I love boxing and will always watch it, but I no longer care who is ranked #8 in the WBC.

The belts really have ruined it. At least in other sports you have a champion at some point.

[Andre]

To the ones who say; How can you watch two men beating the hell out of each other ? I cant understand how anyone can find enjoyment in that.

I tell them they can only see whats going on right on the surface.

Fighters and real fight fans can see underneath it all and they watch it because it can be as intricate as a game of chess except with real consequences and the consequences effect performance just as much as their emotion, heart and will holding together all their skills.

Then there are levels and styles and something deeper called being in the zone.

[Mars_ax]

boxing's like anal... some people love it but most find it painful, uncomfortable and dirty.

so...you only try to get someone to like it once or twice. if they love it you'll have a special friend for life!

any more than that and you're gonna get annoying.

Interesting Rocco, I guess i'll have to take your word for it since i've never tried it, and have no plans to.