The Recent Demise of American Boxing

[rjj tszyu]

I actually hope your right Lyle. I hope American boxing reaches great heights again.

I am first and foremost a boxing fan and when Americans are great boxing is great. Barring Floyd though right now I don't think I could call anyone from the U.S. great. Hopefully the Olympics next year will bring a few very good fighters through at least!

[marbleheadmaui]

I think there is no question that both American boxing and boxing around the world are on the decline.

In the US we have fewer fighters, fewer boxing shows, fewer gyms, fewer good teachers etc than we've had in at least 60 and probably more like 90 years. Why has this come to pass? Four big reasons (and a bunch of little ones).
1. Cultural-There is no other way to look at it, the US has become wussified. The entire culture is becoming feminized in terms of how boys are raised. Fighting is really frowned upon.
2. Economic-Fighters often come from places where people worry about their next meal. That stopped happening here a generation ago.
3. Competition-Up until 50 years ago talented athletes had two ways to make big money. Boxing and baseball. So those sports got the cream of the athletic crop. Now? one caqn make a good living playing soccer, football, baseball, golf, tennis, swimming, weightlifitng and on and on.
4. Corruption-The increase in the number of divisions and belts and therefore the ability of fighters to avoid other top fighters and still call themselves a "champion" has not been lost on fans.

Around the world, with the exception of the old Warsaw Pact Nations and Argentina? The sport is in similar decline. Argentina is about where it has been for 50 years, the Warsaw Pact Nations have come from nowhere to somewhere rapidly.

[armyash]

I think there is no question that both American boxing and boxing around the world are on the decline.

In the US we have fewer fighters, fewer boxing shows, fewer gyms, fewer good teachers etc than we've had in at least 60 and probably more like 90 years. Why has this come to pass? Four big reasons (and a bunch of little ones).
1. Cultural-There is no other way to look at it, the US has become wussified. The entire culture is becoming feminized in terms of how boys are raised. Fighting is really frowned upon.
2. Economic-Fighters often come from places where people worry about their next meal. That stopped happening here a generation ago.
3. Competition-Up until 50 years ago talented athletes had two ways to make big money. Boxing and baseball. So those sports got the cream of the athletic crop. Now? one caqn make a good living playing soccer, football, baseball, golf, tennis, swimming, weightlifitng and on and on.
4. Corruption-The increase in the number of divisions and belts and therefore the ability of fighters to avoid other top fighters and still call themselves a "champion" has not been lost on fans.

Around the world, with the exception of the old Warsaw Pact Nations and Argentina? The sport is in similar decline. Argentina is about where it has been for 50 years, the Warsaw Pact Nations have come from nowhere to somewhere rapidly.

Same in the Uk. Of course it's not everywhere over here and tough areas will always exist. But in general blokes are definitely a lot more feminine, worrying how they look, getting their hair right, posing in bars. Too many people are worried about how they look in other peoples eyes more than they are worried about having a good time. Also health and safety rules everywhere it's ridiculous. Fighting is frowned upon not even just by the authorities but in society everywhere everyone is becoming soft.

[Rantcatrat]

Killer, I agree to an extent, but to be a professional baseball, football, hockey, or basketball player, at this point in time, you really have to be 6'0ish 180ish and above. There just aren't many smaller athletes in those sports. However, boxing gives great athletes aren't quite as tall a forum, yet, there aren't very many amazing boxers out there from the US at the lower weights either. I get it that there are easier ways to make money and maybe that's your point, but are there really other sports for shorter athletes?

[marbleheadmaui]

Killer, I agree to an extent, but to be a professional baseball, football, hockey, or basketball player, at this point in time, you really have to be 6'0ish 180ish and above. There just aren't many smaller athletes in those sports. However, boxing gives great athletes aren't quite as tall a forum, yet, there aren't very many amazing boxers out there from the US at the lower weights either. I get it that there are easier ways to make money and maybe that's your point, but are there really other sports for shorter athletes?

Yup. Guys who would be middles and welters now get college scholarships in basketball (point guards), gymnastics, track, swimming, baseball and tennis. By the time college is over? They are lost to us.

We lose hundreds of possibles every year.

[killersheep]

Killer, I agree to an extent, but to be a professional baseball, football, hockey, or basketball player, at this point in time, you really have to be 6'0ish 180ish and above. There just aren't many smaller athletes in those sports. However, boxing gives great athletes aren't quite as tall a forum, yet, there aren't very many amazing boxers out there from the US at the lower weights either. I get it that there are easier ways to make money and maybe that's your point, but are there really other sports for shorter athletes?

Horse jockeys , Soccer players, mathletes.

Yes I understand, but is there really money for young American boxers in the lighter weight classes? Bradley and Alexander did okay in their outings although based on the turn out and viewership they sure won't be getting anything past their guaranteed extra pay day. Victor Ortiz maybe pulls in some cash. So I'd say there are a few at 140-147 that can make a living doing this as those divisions are stacked with stars, but lightweight and lower is a tough sell in the US especially as a main event. 160 and up the talent pool would clearly have Americans that are over 6' mark if they weren't getting into other sports. 154 I leave out, because by far and large it's a pass through division that noone stays at. So yeah the prospects of even the lower weight classes making money is bleak.

[Larryboy]

I'll never buy the "all our boxers are in other sports" excuse. Every other country where boxers are coming from has other sports too. football's about a million times more popular than boxing here in England and we've still got lots of fighters coming up. The standard onf the new generations has been declining for a long time, the recent crop of guys, Bradley, Ward, Dirrell, Dawson lose or will lose depsite the red carpet match making.

I'd attribute the lack of quality Americans to a combination of more competition from overseas fighters and poorer chaff making poorer wheat look good, so when the stars of the up-comers, completely average guys like Danny Jacobs, lose people are suprised because they were supposed to be the best of what's coming up rather than acknowledging they're nothing special to begin with.

[tysonesque]

This isn't just a case of US boxing being on the decline - it's the sport as a whole.

Britain currently has two fairly prominent world champions in David Haye and Amir Khan, but I will guarantee you that no one apart from hardened boxing fans could tell you anything about them.

In Britain there is no coverage of the sport on terrestrial television whatsoever - none. Most of the time the results of Khan and Haye's fights barely even get a brief mention on the news. In days gone by the BBC showed fights quite a lot as did ITV, but that stopped quite a long time ago. If you want to watch a top fight these days you have to pay for it on PPV and people who only have a passing interest aren't prepared to do that. There is no way of attracting new fans to the sport because you can't watch it without a satellite dish or without paying through the nose for PPV.

Then, of course, there is the ridiculous fragmentation of the "world title" belts. It's absurd that several people can call themselves the world champion and reign for literally years without ever facing the best fighters in their division. What with that and fighters being contracted to different TV networks, promoters etc they can all very easily avoid each other almost their entire career. It's not often you see two "champions" fight each other in their prime anymore. When the big names do get together it's usually when one of them is well past their best and the fight is a big disappointment.

Then there is the corruption and the fact that right now the heavyweight division is God awful. The heavyweights have always been the flagship division and when that is bad boxing as a whole always seems to suffer with it.

I used to be a huge boxing fan and it was by far my favourite sport, but it's not even close now. It just doesn't have the pulling power it once did. The end result is that it doesn't generate the interest it used to. Not as many people watch it and not as many people want to take part in it.

[TitoFan]

I'll never buy the "all our boxers are in other sports" excuse. Every other country where boxers are coming from has other sports too. football's about a million times more popular than boxing here in England and we've still got lots of fighters coming up. The standard onf the new generations has been declining for a long time, the recent crop of guys, Bradley, Ward, Dirrell, Dawson lose or will lose depsite the red carpet match making.

I'd attribute the lack of quality Americans to a combination of more competition from overseas fighters and poorer chaff making poorer wheat look good, so when the stars of the up-comers, completely average guys like Danny Jacobs, lose people are suprised because they were supposed to be the best of what's coming up rather than acknowledging they're nothing special to begin with.

Pre-fukking-cisely!