MMA bill passes second hurdle, moves to Assembly’s Ways & Means Committee

[-Kev-]

Its definitely slacking, but at least we've not got a lack of stars, they're all ready and waiting for these big name cowards to offer them a fight and once they're established then the major PPV's will start happening. We've got a whole new exciting era of heavyweight boxing to look forward to as well.

Wilder vs Povetkin in Russia

Fury vs Klitschko 2 in the UK

David Haye coming out of retirement

Anthony Joshua is fighting for the IBF heavyweight title in 2 weeks

All of those fights could be borefests. Wilder vs Povetkin has potential to be anything, including dirty and sloppy. I hope not.

Fury-Klitshcko 2 if it's anything like the first fight you can forget about that fight being some kind of savior for boxing.

David Haye and Anthony Joshua are exciting.

We need the smaller weights to pick it up, that's where the fight of the years happen.

[Monaco Slim]

All of those fights could be borefests. Wilder vs Povetkin has potential to be anything, including dirty and sloppy. I hope not.

Fury-Klitshcko 2 if it's anything like the first fight you can forget about that fight being some kind of savior for boxing.

David Haye and Anthony Joshua are exciting.

We need the smaller weights to pick it up, that's where the fight of the years happen.

The small guys have had their time, BRING ON THE HEAVYWEIGHTS!

[Eff Pandas]

Dana White knows how to manufacture a "good" fighter and make him/her appear great as well as HBO used to do.

Dana isn't doing much of anything with creating names. The UFC builds names via good fighters at all levels fighting each other until the cream reaches the top. They do that at the cost of marinating some fights that boxing would marinate for a year. The benefit is sharp fighters at the top of their game creating a superior product for the UFC in the combat sports world than anyone else is offering. Guys will continue to be "exposed" as you say, but the reality is few fighters are capable of shining long term at the top while fighting other top fighters & less boxers would have long reigns if boxing worked like the UFC does.

[-Kev-]

Dana isn't doing much of anything with creating names. The UFC builds names via good fighters at all levels fighting each other until the cream reaches the top. They do that at the cost of marinating some fights that boxing would marinate for a year. The benefit is sharp fighters at the top of their game creating a superior product for the UFC in the combat sports world than anyone else is offering. Guys will continue to be "exposed" as you say, but the reality is few fighters are capable of shining long term at the top while fighting other top fighters & less boxers would have long reigns if boxing worked like the UFC does.

You need good matchmaking though. And Dana is in charge of the UFC which makes it easier to take over the #1 combat sport. Whatever good talent he has, he can match them together, and build other fighters in the meantime with good matchmaking. You absolutely need good matchmaking in combat sport to build up a fighter. But what happens when you build up a fighter through good matchmaking, but you do not capitalize on the hype by putting him against the best? Instead you continue with good matchmaking, while the fighters talk about "500-1 million not enough, need $2 million."?

[Eff Pandas]

You need good matchmaking though. And Dana is in charge of the UFC which makes it easier to take over the #1 combat sport. Whatever good talent he has, he can match them together, and build other fighters in the meantime with good matchmaking. You absolutely need good matchmaking in combat sport to build up a fighter. But what happens when you build up a fighter through good matchmaking, but you do not capitalize on the hype by putting him against the best? Instead you continue with good matchmaking, while the fighters talk about "500-1 million not enough, need $2 million."?

Thank Joe Silva & Sean Shelby for the matchmaking not Dana.

And the UFC always has pretty even matchmaking at all levels so its not really a problem. Maybe it will be at some point who knows. The money is starting to become more of an issue & that will continue. The UFC has lost 5 or 6 notable fighters to Bellator (the #2 MMA league) since the Reebok deal came into play last summer. Some name fighters are losing $100k+/per fight on sponsorship money with them not being able to accept sponsors anymore. Many believe this is the cause or a key factor in most of those guys jumping ship.

[-Kev-]

Thank Joe Silva & Sean Shelby for the matchmaking not Dana.

And the UFC always has pretty even matchmaking at all levels so its not really a problem. Maybe it will be at some point who knows. The money is starting to become more of an issue & that will continue. The UFC has lost 5 or 6 notable fighters to Bellator (the #2 MMA league) since the Reebok deal came into play last summer. Some name fighters are losing $100k+/per fight on sponsorship money with them not being able to accept sponsors anymore. Many believe this is the cause or a key factor in most of those guys jumping ship.

It doesn't matter who's doing the matchmaking, I didn't say Dana White is doing the matchmaking but it's irrelevant who's doing it anyway, it's UFC at the end of the day. And Dana White is in charge of it.

Boxing needs to step up plain and simple. I don't care about sponsorship or $100k, when boxing is just not delivering. When your counter argument is talking about what UFC is doing bad, and not that boxing needs to step it up, then you are not being reasonable.

[Eff Pandas]

Boxing needs to step up plain and simple. I don't care about sponsorship or $100k, when boxing is just not delivering. When your counter argument is talking about what UFC is doing bad, and not that boxing needs to step it up, then you are not being reasonable.

The problems in boxing are too many to mention & no one can "step it up" cuz no one is running all the things that need to be improved. Everyone is looking out for themselves. The first thing boxing needs is a centralized power structure like every other sport has. Til that happens boxing is bound to be a clusterf#ck of a sport.

[Anthony342]

PPV buys aren't everything since not everyone lives in the US, TV numbers and ticket sales are a good indicator.

Ricky Hatton would pack arena's everywhere he fought, even bringing tens of thousands of British fans to America with him.

Carl Froch packed Wembley with 80,000 people and made retirement money

David Haye has made enough to retire

Klitschko could have retired like 6 years ago, he's had fights that have broken multiple records in terms of TV viewership

Golovkin is doing great numbers on HBO and is selling out everywhere he fights

Kell Brook is selling out in the UK and making decent money

Canelo is drawing huge money despite his age

Khan is about to make millions for the Canelo fight

Tyson Fury just won the heavyweight title and is going to make massive money, even in mandatory fights.

there's a lot of guys having success in Boxing right now so its still healthy despite not having a Mayweather level PPV seller, but in the UFC only Conor is and maybe Ronda (if anyone still cares about her, that remains to be seen), can sell out an arena in MMA. Even then they were a draw for, it was only for a maximum of 2 fights each which really isn't that much money generated.

Oh I know boxing is still fine. And those guys are doing well, but most casual don't know those names, outside maybe Klitschko, since he's appeared in a movie and married to Hayden Panettiere. Back in the day, everyone knew who the top boxers were. In the US, I usually see numbers between about 700k to 1 million viewers, unless someone like Mayweather fought. Other places, yeah it's huge in England, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Germany, Argentina, just not so much here in the US.

Speaking of which, I think I'll check out the Andre Ward fight when it comes on in about an hour live. He would be a big star years ago, since he was an Olympic gold medalist. PBC fights on NBC, getting back on a major network, is definitely a step in the right direction. Now you need more guys willing to fight the best, instead of ducking them or waiting them out. I was glad when Ring stripped Stevenson of his light heavyweight belt for not fighting Kovalev. Also loved when Kovalev called him Chickenson haha.

[Anthony342]

When's Cuomo supposed to sign this bill, anyway?

[Monaco Slim]

Oh I know boxing is still fine. And those guys are doing well, but most casual don't know those names, outside maybe Klitschko, since he's appeared in a movie and married to Hayden Panettiere. Back in the day, everyone knew who the top boxers were. In the US, I usually see numbers between about 700k to 1 million viewers, unless someone like Mayweather fought. Other places, yeah it's huge in England, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Germany, Argentina, just not so much here in the US.

Speaking of which, I think I'll check out the Andre Ward fight when it comes on in about an hour live. He would be a big star years ago, since he was an Olympic gold medalist. PBC fights on NBC, getting back on a major network, is definitely a step in the right direction. Now you need more guys willing to fight the best, instead of ducking them or waiting them out. I was glad when Ring stripped Stevenson of his light heavyweight belt for not fighting Kovalev. Also loved when Kovalev called him Chickenson haha.

I'll agree with that, its big in a lot of countries, just not America now that Mayweather has retired.

I think after that 4 million odd PPV buys at 100 dollars each we can give Boxing a little pass for the lack of big events in recent times though, its in a cooling off stage.