Boxing's Infiltration Of Comedy, Celebrities, & Social Media: The Financial Implications
It all started with the Logan Paul and Floyd Mayweather fight on June 6, 2021. Or maybe not. Maybe it started with "Thrilla in Manilla" when Muhammad Ali was pitted against Joe Frazier in the Heavyweight fight of the century back in 1975. Or maybe it was even before then. Was it Jack Johnson against Tommy Burns, the bout that marked the first black Heavyweight champion of the world? Joe Gans and Oscar "Battling" Nelson in one of the last "fight to the finish" matches for the Lightweight title? Or was it the ultimate event of cultural significance: Jack Johnson vs. James J. Jeffries, the 1910 matchup that drew millions into the audience and resulted in race riots in virtually every major city in America, where the impact of Jeffries defeat echoed through the hearts of every young black fighter in the nation who now knew that anything was achievable.
Regardless of where it started, or where it has gone, the cultural significance of boxing is one of the most profound in the history of sports. It encompasses the totality of man, his brutal nature and pure energy that can only be expressed in well-calculated rage. It reflects the concept of war presented in the microcosm of two men who engage in a strategy-battle of both wits and muscle. And most importantly, it shifts the cultural tide and conversation of the nation as no matter the opinions of the fighters, the trainers, or the audience at the time, the end results are always indisputable: there is one winner, one glorious victor who stands above the rest of man, and one loser, one defeated victim of circumstance who has no other choice but to pick up by his gloves and start training again.
Recently, boxing has made a resurgence into the mainstream, not necessarily through titlefights and cutting-edge cards, but through celebrity appearances including social media stars who are hoping to expand their fame, learn a new skill, and get a taste of the glory that comes when a ref raises their arm as both blood and sweat stream down their face.
So what exactly spurred this new resurgence of boxing? And what fights have signified that this trend might continue? By taking a look back at some of the recent cards that have deviated from traditional boxing, a new pattern seems to emerge that might be about something beyond the glory of winning and more in line with glamors of greed.
Logan Paul, the YouTube social star who is known for creating controversy and thriving off its contentious responses, chose to pursue the path of boxing in 2018 when he fought fellow YouTuber Olajide "KSI" Olatunji. The fight took place August 25, 2018 at the Manchester Arena in England and resulted in a draw, with both fighters agreeing to return to Paul's town of Los Angeles to settle the score.
In November of 2019, the fighters met again, this time at the Staples Center venue. KSI defeated Paul in a narrow split-decision. But the fight wasn't a total loss for Paul. This second bout resulted in higher pay-per-view numbers than the former, with both Paul and KSI taking home a guaranteed $900,000 for the fight alone per CSAC. As part of the same title card, Devin Haney took home $1 million for his WEB title defense and Billy Joe Saunders took home $750k for his WBO title defense.
Paul had been wrestling since high school and college which may have ignited his passion for getting on the canvas, but it seems that beyond fighting, the money was his draw to continue professionally, which contributed to his next match, the highest profile of his "career" thus far.
The title alone is a loaded scenario as when both competitors entered the ring, Paul had a record of only 0-1-1, while Mayweather, whom many consider the greatest defensive boxer in the sports history, had a record of 50-0, making them almost pure opposites on the spectrum. Regardless, Paul undertook intensive training under the guidance of coach Milton Lacroix. Lacroix is known for having trained both amateur and professional boxers since the mid-1980s including Shannon Briggs who went on to win the Heavyweight title.
Much like their records, Floyd had the opposite approach in preparation. Floyd announced his retirement from the sport several times since 2007, his last resignation occurring in 2017 after he beat Conor McGregor. He chose to return for an exhibition bout against Paul on June 6, 2021 in Miami, Florida. But what would cause the undefeated boxer to risk losing his perfect record? The answer, unfortunately, may not surprise you.
As the fight was an exhibition, there are no official figures that are required to be released in relation to how much the fighters made. But there has been a range of speculations. One site sources that Mayweather was guaranteed $10 million in addition to 50% of the pay-per-view buys, while Paul was guaranteed roughly $250,000 and 10% of the PPV. Back in March of 2021, Mayweather himself stated that in the final outcome, he could make upwards of $100 million off the fight, while Paul could make an estimated $20 million. With astronomical numbers like these, it wasn't long before social stars, influencers, and a variety of other celebrity grifters began to chime in.
Following the national attention of the Paul vs. Mayweather fight, a new card was announced titled TikTok vs. YouTube. While Paul vs. Mayweather was a loaded match going in, several fight commentators were surprised by the skill set presented by Paul who managed to last 8 rounds with one of the greatest boxers in history. The match earned surprising praise from professional fight commentator Joe Rogan who stated in an Instagram review:
"Floyd Mayweather is a f---ing genius in more ways than one. He's arguably the greatest boxer of all time...and managed to make hundreds of millions of dollars fighting people who really don't have a chance to beat him. He's figured out a way to compete into his 40s and make more money than any other boxer alive...And for Logan Paul, just going 8 hard rounds with a superb multi division world champion like Floyd is pretty f---ing incredible....Yeah it was a freak show, and yeah real world class boxing between champions is better, but I thought it was pretty f---ing interesting. Kudos to both men."
Contrary to the resemblance of actual fighting that took place in Paul vs. Mayweather, the TikTok vs. YouTube fight was an anticipated embarrassment. It lacked the fighting, preparation, and semblance of integrity that just barely graced the Paul vs. Mayweather bout.
The title card for "Social Gloves: Battle of the Platforms" featured a "main event" of Austin McBroom from the YouTube channel The ACE Family pitted against TikTok star and Sway House member Bryce Hall. McBroom dominated the fight, defeating Hall with a TKO. But the punch wasn't what mattered, the stipulations in place stated that each social star would have to pay the other a $1 million bonus in the event of a knockout, another gut punch to Bryce Hall.
The fight also included matches between: AnEsonGib vs. Tayler Holder, Deji vs. Vinnie Hacker, DDG vs. Nate Wyatt, Faze Jarvis vs. Michael Le, Tanner Fox vs. Ryland Storms, Landon McBroom vs. Ben Azelart, and Ryan Johnston vs. Cale Saurage.
More interesting than any of these fights were the numbers. The pay-per-view price for the match was $49.99 including a service fee that rounded up to $60 per viewer. There were also "upgraded packages" that cost anywhere from $69.99 to $89.99. And, of course, each purchase of the fight included an "exclusive" NFT.
Sporting News reported that Bryce Hall was expected to make $5 million off the fight in addition to 4% of the PPV. McBroom confirmed the same set of figures. As TikTok begins to lose viewers and the platform finds its place in social media obscurity, the fight serves as a surrogate retirement fund for the influencers who can now invest and continue to grow their reported earnings.
The financial incentive didn't end there. Shortly after the fight, several other celebrities, influencers, and comedians began to form their own title cards and exhibition matches. This included Logan's brother Jake Paul who went on to fight former NBA player Jake Robinson as well as YouTuber AnEsonGib. Former NBA player Lamar Odom fought popstar Aaron Carter in June of 2021, and comedians Luis J. Gomez and Jason Ellis scheduled a fight for 2021 as well.
Despite the clout-chasers, there are still several professional boxing matches scheduled for 2021. This includes bouts between Julio Cesar Chavez Jr and Anderson Silva in June, Manny Pacquiao and Errol Spence Jr. in August, and Tyson Fury against Deontay Wilder in July. But will the anticipation of professional boxers be eclipsed by the hype presented from celebrities and social media stars willing to enter the ring? Boxing has long been a sport of cultural reflection, and, as unfortunate as it may seem, it's only fitting that the tables have turned, and now culture is being reflected in boxing itself.
Sources: EvolveMMA, USAToday, CNN, ESPN, Insider, ScreenRant, FightNights, Decider, FightCity, ReviewJournal, SportingNews, TitleBoxing, Sportskeeda, FiteTV, CBSSports, UsAs, NYTimes, Instagram, Independent, YahooNews, History, Distractify, SportsIllustrated, DigitalTrends
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