Prior to a Thursday first report by Tris Dixon’s Total Boxing in which multiple sources told him the deal is agreed upon, Alakshikh made an ominous statement at Wednesday’s Anthony Joshua-Tyson Fury news conference in London, England.

“I will not be here long,” Alalshikh said following years-long reporting that he’s battling a chronic illness. “I don’t know if I’ll remember this in two years. My health in the last four months is not good … I want to deliver this [Joshua-Fury] fight.”

Alalshikh, who has staged a slew of major bouts in Saudi Arabia, the U.K. and U.S. since 2023, purchased The Ring from Oscar De La Hoya in November 2024 for a reported $10 million after De La Hoya bought the so-called “Bible of Boxing” for a reported $7 million in 2007.

By compiling reporting and broadcast talent including BoxingScene founder Rick Reeno, former ESPN/The Athletic insider Mike Coppinger and ex-HBO analyst Max Kellerman for a talk show that streams on DAZN, Alalshikh formed a powerhouse of brand names in the industry with exclusive access to the starring athletes topping his cards. 

Yet, while Alalshikh promised that the publication would be “fully independent and focusing on every aspect in the sport of boxing,” The Ring has also drawn criticism for using its reach to promote Alalshikh’s side in varying situations.

Following a 2025 BoxingScene story about leaked pay scales for the new Zuffa Boxing promotion in which Sela owns a 60 per cent stake, The Ring issued a social-media post warning BoxingScene/ProBoxTV owner Garry Jonas to focus on his Florida rehabilitation-clinic facilities. By then, BoxingScene staff had already been banned from attending Ring events.

The Ring also criticized Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions earlier this year when Tyson Fury’s promoter decided to promote a Daniel Dubois-Fabio Wardley heavyweight title fight in May on its own in the U.K., questioning Queensberry’s financial health and alleging poor ticket sales when the event hadn’t begun the public sale.

De La Hoya has expressed regret over the sale in interviews and on social media. He declined to divulge if he had the right of first refusal to purchase The Ring in the case of Alalshikh moving to sell it.

Yet, an official close to De La Hoya told BoxingScene the promoter would not want to purchase the publication back because it’s considered a “dead asset” due to its lack of integrity.

Asked about The Ring, a DAZN spokesman told BoxingScene, “As company policy, we do not confirm, deny, or comment on market rumours or speculation regarding mergers and acquisitions, partnerships or rights deals.”

How DAZN would reshape the editorial policy of The Ring and how it would treat the company’s distribution of its lineal belts to champions now that it has streaming deals with major promoters including Queensberry, De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions, Top Rank, Matchroom and Premier Boxing Champions is unknown.

It’s additionally unclear if Alalshikh is shifting his interest from boxing to his health concerns or another cause. He has previously engaged in Esports, music, film and pro wrestling in attempts to cast his oil-rich nation as a global tourist destination.

He has scheduled an October 31 super-middleweight title fight between four-division champion Canelo Alvarez and WBC champion Christian Mbilli in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but the enthusiasm of fight crowds there has been lacking and some high-profile fighters on that card are still awaiting contracts.

It took public reporting by Joshua promoter Eddie Hearn to get his two-time heavyweight champion paid nearly two months after he fought for Alalshikh in July.