Quote Originally Posted by nuggetdotcom View Post
Quote Originally Posted by Primo Carnera View Post
Quote Originally Posted by nuggetdotcom View Post
Just to be clear

When I made my original comments about AJ not being worth a bill topping slot after his recent performance(s) there followed the sensible, boxing related comments and comparisons with older fighters of my youth, the normal stuff of this site, who coulda woulda shoulda. Then the popularity angle entered the argument which I for one poo poo'd, this site is about boxing after all.

Then I looked at AJ's wikipedia pages.....................

The purse monies he has been getting are mindblowing, he is truly a product of the media age, take a good amateur, turn him pro then get the media boys to do their work and keep your fingers crossed, some may call it 'popularity', I would call it hype, but if it sells PPV then so what. I did notice a recent post about Connor Wassname and UFC, same principle but on a beer money scale by comparison. Boxing ability has absolutely fuck all to do with the price of eggs.

Having said all that I dont begrudge any fighter the money, I just wish it could be shared on the basis of ability and results, not hype.

I bet Audley Harrison is sick, if only he was 8 years younger!!!!
Agreed with every single part of the above post, and have been banging on about it forever.
EXCEPT FOR THE LAST SENTENCE!
Audley had his chance when he turned pro. He had every top promoter in the World after him and became a millionaire without having a pro fight. Unfortunately he was BBC’s last throw of the dice before Sky etc. Mopped up. Some people even believe that Audley was to blame for the end of World class Boxing on free to air TV.
Audley basically:
Made some bad decisions
Wasn’t dedicated enough
Wasn’t good enough
Not exciting enough to sell out the “hype train”
Boxing ability is one thing , but it has to be backed up by bottle and a chin.
When you get found out, it’s over.

I didn't actually say Audley was any good, he just didn't have the same 'media managers' around him that AJ did 12 (not 8 as I said) years later.

Went with a group of local lads to see audley fight local (to us) lad Michael Sprott at Wembley, car got towed to the pound so we all ended up in a Wembley Indian, well lubricated, and asked the owner to book us a taxi home, we all had Sprott at 7/1 so were feeling no pain whatsoever.
No, but you alluded to the fact that Audley would’ve raked it in.
But he had the same chances that AJ had. The difference is that you have to back up the hype with a bit of substance.