The history of the IBA and WBU.

[WBC WBA IBF]

The IBA was owned by former baseball legend Dean Chance. Bob Arum had a long history of propping up second rate sanctioning bodies when he couldn't monopolize the more prestigious championships. Arum had a monopoly of the WBA for years when the WBC championship was far more established and prestigious. Arum even assisted the Latin Americans in stealing the WBA from the United States. Eventually, Arum regretted backstabbing the US commissions as nothing could stop Don King from paying bigger bribes to the WBA than Arum had been paying, and Arum began to lose control.

So Arum publicly outed the WBA bribery operation, named names, and tried to destroy the WBA. He then threw his weight fully behind the newly established IBF, hoping to have a monopoly of IBF titles the way he had with the WBA previously. But eventually, like with the WBA, Don King started paying the IBF bigger bribes than Arum was paying and Arum grew frustrated that he no longer had a monopoly of the IBF.

Arum then began promoting IBA title fights in hopes the IBA could replace the IBF. In the late 90s and early 00s, many major Top Rank cards, including huge Oscar De La Hoya pay-per-views featured the IBA world championship in the main event. However, the TV networks, media and public really rejected the attempt to present the IBA as credible, so Arum moved on to his next plan.

Years earlier, Pepe Cordero was the man Arum named by name as the leader of the WBA bribery operation and the man Arum paid all of his bribes to. This caused Cordero to be blackballed by the WBA and Cordero was furious with Arum and held a grudge for years.

Cordero founded the WBO due to being kicked out of the WBA after Arum outed him as the bagman. But after Arum's IBA plan flopped, Cordero was no longer in charge of the WBO, so Arum started taking over control of the WBO and has had a monopoly of the WBO ever since. Arum is directly responsible for why boxing has so many world titles.

The IBA's owner died and a couple years later, Steve Smoger just stole the name and restarted the IBA, although nobody really pays attention to it.

As for the WBU, Jon Robinson was the head of the IBF in Europe, but decided he wanted to control his own world title, so he left the IBF and created the WBU. The WBU closed down when Robinson died, but years later, like the IBA, new people came along and just stole the name. Two different new WBUs emerged. One in America and one in Germany. The one in America turned out to be controlled by a white supremacist who had tried to create an all white basketball league. Once that was discovered, the American WBU just kind of vanished. I think the fake German WBU may still exist though.

[PeepeePoopooMan]

You're still showing your face? Remember when you said fury-wilder wasn't happening and the idiot robbie proved you wrong? How heart broken were you when windmill got stopped?

[WBC WBA IBF]

You're still showing your face? Remember when you said fury-wilder wasn't happening and the idiot robbie proved you wrong? How heart broken were you when windmill got stopped?

You have a strange memory. Robbie was insisting Wilder didn't want to fight Fury. You have things backwards.

[WBC WBA IBF]

Had someone PM me asking why the IBO has dropped off.

Sky Sports killed all of their momentum. The IBO was following a similar path to the WBO where it slowly gains steam, mainly in Europe where historically promoters have been more eager to feature unrecognized titles.

Sky Sports then decided they would no longer broadcast IBO, WBU, etc fights. They only wanted the main four world titles and regional title bouts (British, Commonwealth, European, etc). Once Sky Sports made that rule, the IBO lost all of their momentum and have never recovered.

For a while, Frank Warren was backing the WBU while Eddie Hearn was backing the IBO and WBF. The head of Sky Sports deciding to ban the WBU, IBO and WBF essentially crippled those three organizations.

[Tatabanya]

Nobody ever remembers the WTF when alphabet titles are involved.

[RJJ-94-02=GOAT]

Had someone PM me asking why the IBO has dropped off.

Sky Sports killed all of their momentum. The IBO was following a similar path to the WBO where it slowly gains steam, mainly in Europe where historically promoters have been more eager to feature unrecognized titles.

Sky Sports then decided they would no longer broadcast IBO, WBU, etc fights. They only wanted the main four world titles and regional title bouts (British, Commonwealth, European, etc). Once Sky Sports made that rule, the IBO lost all of their momentum and have never recovered.

For a while, Frank Warren was backing the WBU while Eddie Hearn was backing the IBO and WBF. The head of Sky Sports deciding to ban the WBU, IBO and WBF essentially crippled those three organizations.

Sky never banned IBO title fights. They’ve shown them for years. Still show them now. They were literally promoting AJ as a “four belt unified champion”.

I don’t think they banned WBU fights either, they were still showing WBU fights on Warren shows up until the mid 2000’s when the WBU began to collapse.

[Smash]

You're still showing your face? Remember when you said fury-wilder wasn't happening and the idiot robbie proved you wrong? How heart broken were you when windmill got stopped?

its still a red face after losing a mil on the fury wilder fight LMAO

btw i made 10 mil on that fight

[Marchegiano]

WAA is probably my favorite minor league story. Good ol Monte Masters

[WBC WBA IBF]

Sky never banned IBO title fights. They’ve shown them for years. Still show them now. They were literally promoting AJ as a “four belt unified champion”.

I don’t think they banned WBU fights either, they were still showing WBU fights on Warren shows up until the mid 2000’s when the WBU began to collapse.

"Three British fighters with claims to 'world' champion status simultaneously lost their title belts last month. Carl Thompson, Jawaid Khaliq and Damaen Kelley all held International Boxing Organization belts but the US-based sanctioning body was forced to strip the British trio of their crowns after each failed to make a defense in 2005.

What is interesting is that these fighters were not prevented from defending their belts because of any illness or injury, but because their respective promoters could not get broadcast partner Sky Sports to agree to showcase (and bankroll) a fight involving an IBO title.

After years of trying to present WBU, WBF and various 'Intercontinental' and 'International' baubles as legitimate championships to their viewers, Sky decided to significantly up their quality control last summer and it appears the IBO - and the three Britons who held IBO titles - have become a causality of that new policy."



"It's not fair to call it a strict 'policy' as such but there's no doubt what we are trying to do is concentrate on the titles from the more widely recognised sanctioning bodies. That means British, Commonwealth and European Titles and, at world level, WBC, WBA and IBF titles. There are the ones recognised across the world. I'd also add the WBO into that purely because of the WBO's history in this country with (the reigns of) Benn, Eubank, Collins and Hamed all lending it credibility in this country. I think they are the titles which we should try and concentrate on."

In a move which may puzzle some fans, Sky want Thompson in a meaningful fight but not in an IBO title defence. Thompson was even asked to challenge Mark Hobson for the British Title on the show and, while that would be an excellent fight, at age 41 Thompson understandably feels miffed that he, a proud world-class title holder if not exactly a 'world champion', was asked to fight for a domestic belt he has twice relinquished without ever losing in the ring.

[RJJ-94-02=GOAT]

"Three British fighters with claims to 'world' champion status simultaneously lost their title belts last month. Carl Thompson, Jawaid Khaliq and Damaen Kelley all held International Boxing Organization belts but the US-based sanctioning body was forced to strip the British trio of their crowns after each failed to make a defense in 2005.

What is interesting is that these fighters were not prevented from defending their belts because of any illness or injury, but because their respective promoters could not get broadcast partner Sky Sports to agree to showcase (and bankroll) a fight involving an IBO title.

After years of trying to present WBU, WBF and various 'Intercontinental' and 'International' baubles as legitimate championships to their viewers, Sky decided to significantly up their quality control last summer and it appears the IBO - and the three Britons who held IBO titles - have become a causality of that new policy."



"It's not fair to call it a strict 'policy' as such but there's no doubt what we are trying to do is concentrate on the titles from the more widely recognised sanctioning bodies. That means British, Commonwealth and European Titles and, at world level, WBC, WBA and IBF titles. There are the ones recognised across the world. I'd also add the WBO into that purely because of the WBO's history in this country with (the reigns of) Benn, Eubank, Collins and Hamed all lending it credibility in this country. I think they are the titles which we should try and concentrate on."

In a move which may puzzle some fans, Sky want Thompson in a meaningful fight but not in an IBO title defence. Thompson was even asked to challenge Mark Hobson for the British Title on the show and, while that would be an excellent fight, at age 41 Thompson understandably feels miffed that he, a proud world-class title holder if not exactly a 'world champion', was asked to fight for a domestic belt he has twice relinquished without ever losing in the ring.

Yeah I remember them scaling back but they never banned them completely. The IBO has always been pretty well revived over here.

I actually supported this move at the time, I’m a big believer in the legitimate organisations like BBBofC, CBC, EBU and the four recognised ABC World titles- it even took me a while to accept the WBO tbh. However, Sky are such hypocrites man, even if they say they’re gonna do something, it doesn’t mean they’ll actually do it and this was a prime example. For instance, 3 years after denouncing Thompson’s IBO reign they were promoting Lovemore Ndou vs Matthew Hatton as Hatton’s “big chance at a world title”. That same year they were showing Ricky Hatton IBO title fights on PPV.

Bottom line is, if there’s money in it for Sky, morals go out the window. For instance had Haye beat Thompson and Sky had the chance to promote a more marketable fighter as a “world champion” rather than a 40 year old on the brink of retirement, I imagine they would have seen things differently.