SO.. Is the talent in boxing today any worse since UFC took off?

[RSBonos]

The boxing talent pool has always been much larger. MMA is going through a transition phase and the crap money will hold it back. Zuffa make Arum seem generous.

[Eff Pandas]

I think the turn from boxing being the most popular fighting sport to MMA being the most popular fighting sport is still a move thats in transition so I wouldn't expect much noticeable at this point among possible participants. I do know that it appears younger cats are more likely to be MMA fans/participants over boxing fans/participants & I think thats a trend that will continue & will be felt further down the line.

For how long its been in the mainstream MMA has made tremendous progression & while its not always been a straight up trajectory or will it be a trajectory with constant upward movement in the future I think its nearly a forgone conclusion that MMA will be the premier "fighting" sport in the eyes of the public at some point in the future. I think its already debatable MMA has surpassed boxing, but sooner or later, 5 years, 10 years, 20 years down the line it won't be a debatable topic any longer. I'll always love boxing first, but I think this is whats currently happening & will continue happening unless boxing makes some major changes to bring in younger fans & correct the corruption in the sport.

[Redd Foxx]

I think it's better now. MMA has raised interest in combat sports and that has brought more kids into boxing. At my old boxing gym, membership jumped 4 fold when MMA took off in 2008-2010. Many guys that get serious into mma wrestled in college. Kids that study boxing can be boxers. There is no where for a talented wrestler to go but coaching.

[RSBonos]

I think the turn from boxing being the most popular fighting sport to MMA being the most popular fighting sport is still a move thats in transition so I wouldn't expect much noticeable at this point among possible participants. I do know that it appears younger cats are more likely to be MMA fans/participants over boxing fans/participants & I think thats a trend that will continue & will be felt further down the line.

For how long its been in the mainstream MMA has made tremendous progression & while its not always been a straight up trajectory or will it be a trajectory with constant upward movement in the future I think its nearly a forgone conclusion that MMA will be the premier "fighting" sport in the eyes of the public at some point in the future. I think its already debatable MMA has surpassed boxing, but sooner or later, 5 years, 10 years, 20 years down the line it won't be a debatable topic any longer. I'll always love boxing first, but I think this is whats currently happening & will continue happening unless boxing makes some major changes to bring in younger fans & correct the corruption in the sport.

That's just a lot of paranoid fearmongering. The UFC's recent ratings = PBC. They aren't growing anymore and I wouldn't be shocked if their owners sell it off in a few years.

[Roy Keane]

Boxing is doing fine! In the UK we have Bisping in MMA only MMA bods would know him. In boxing we have AJ, Brook, Khan, Degale, Groves, Froch, Smith Bros, Fury family then you have the Kevin Mitchells of the sport who have big fan bases. Also Luke Campell. Boxing is on the up in the UK. MMA is easier to get into like others have said. I could be decent at MMA in my local area after 1 year would take me 3 years or more in Boxing.

[PecVentus]

The UFC is more popular and has more talent because there is no hiding place for fighters. There is no "if the money is right"......no, the top challengers face the belt holders and there is no hiding place or avoiding each other for 5 years, none of them games and that is one of the reasons I prefer UFC as I get to see the fights happen.

In boxing, my favourite era was Benn, Eubank, back then the fights (us fans wanted to witness) happened, rematches took place, none of this running away from each other and if Boxing wants to improve the talent we need to see a shake up of the industry and learn from the UFC.

[Eff Pandas]

That's just a lot of paranoid fearmongering. The UFC's recent ratings = PBC. They aren't growing anymore and I wouldn't be shocked if their owners sell it off in a few years.

Fearmongering? I got no horse in this race. Boxing is my favorite sport & combat specific favorite sport & MMA is my side*****, but a blind man can see the writing on the wall.

Ratings are just one factor. Go look at PPV numbers. The UFC gots 200k+ a month PPV sales. No one is doing regular PPV's of those numbers. Go to a hundred random sports sites & you'll see MMA getting better coverage than boxing. If you live in a bigger city & you don't got more MMA gyms than boxing gyms I think you're in the minority for big cities. Random people I talk about sports to (& MMA & Boxing are the only sports I talk about) seem to know more about MMA & know more UFC guys than they know about boxing & boxers. I don't suspect thats unusual for anyone who talks about both sports with people. I see more cats wearing MMA gear than boxing gear.

There are other things to look at besides the things I mentioned & ratings too. The trend is clearly moving towards MMA becoming the premier fighting sport. I don't see that as fearmongering or debatable. Its just the truth, like it or not, believe it or not.

That sorta stuff that don't seem all that important to you & maybe others now will have an impact on boxing in the future. MMA having a centralized power structure via the UFC is key too. Boxing is a cluster**** & everyone is out for their own thing which doesn't help promote boxing to the masses consistently. It only makes sense a group with a centralized power structure would be capable of mass success, more consistently than a group of a half dozen to a dozen major players mostly trying to get theres.

[Eff Pandas]

Boxing is doing fine! In the UK we have Bisping in MMA only MMA bods would know him. In boxing we have AJ, Brook, Khan, Degale, Groves, Froch, Smith Bros, Fury family then you have the Kevin Mitchells of the sport who have big fan bases. Also Luke Campell. Boxing is on the up in the UK. MMA is easier to get into like others have said. I could be decent at MMA in my local area after 1 year would take me 3 years or more in Boxing.

No one is saying that often used bs line of "boxing is dying". If you say that remark I'm pretty sure you are either an idiot or an *******.

I would add based on your take on your country that my take is the US side of this reality of the sports. No question boxing is still the #1 combat sport & will be for a long time to come in many countries. And I don't even feel qualified to discuss the worldwide angle to this debate but its clear that both have pools of great popularity in many regions. What that adds up to worldwide idek. All I know is in the US MMA is trending towards surpassing boxing in combat sports popularity & I think it could be argued it already has just due to its consistent mainstream coverage that boxing only gets during big fights.

I would disagree MMA is easier to take up then boxing. There are more disciplines in MMA. I mean you can get in the ring & compete at the amateur level of either of those sports in 3-6mos, but its gonna take a whole lot more time to up your games in several disciplines than just the discipline of boxing. That remark is as silly as saying a boxer has just a good of a chance at beating a MMA guy in MMA as a MMA guy does of beating a boxer in boxing. I'd take Cain Velasquez to KO Wladimir Klitschko in boxing, before I'd take Wladimir Klitschko to submit or KO Cain Velasquez in MMA.

[croz]

MMA is taking off in places with minimal boxing presence aka India, indochina and China....

Boxing has peaked while MMA as a sport is in its "infancy" stages internationally.

Keep feeling butt hurt thou.

Boxing has spread more in China and India than MMA. Mary Kom and Zou Shiming are very famous in their countries. Rex Tso is getting big in Hong Kong while Dong is making a splash too. MMA has no well known Indians or Chinese.

[Anderson Silva]

Boxing will always be more popular because it involves less talent, so more people can get involved do it. You can play boxing, you don't play MMA. That is where the hardcore real fighting fans watch.