Boxing's Buzzing Again

Boxing is once again in the middle of a genuinely exciting and growing time as a sport. No matter what any of the naysayers say, boxing is alive and well and quickly returning to main stream media, where it belongs.

As we approach the fight of the century on May 2nd between Mayweather and Pacquaio, in what many have predicted will be the biggest fight ever including the legendary Marvin Hagler, the electric energy that boxing is enjoying as a sport is almost palpable.

It is a far cry form the many knocks the industry has taken over the years, many of which were unfounded, uneducated and prejudice slurs by people who simply wanted to take a pop and give boxing the stereotypical 'black eye'.

So far this year there has been numerous, major new TV deals done around the world, involving mass broadcast of the sport once again.

In the States you have the likes of CBS, NBC, Spike TV, HBO, Showtime and ESPN all showing live boxing and distributing boxing content on a regular basis through their programming and online outlets.

This weekend for example, the new Premier Boxing Champions series will go out to millions, when the headline act of Danny Garcia vs Lamont Peterson and co-main event Andy Lee vs Peter Quillin will be beamed across America on prime time network TV, live on NBC.

In the UK and Europe you've got broadcasters showing the sport like Sky Sports, Channel 5, Eurosport, BoxNation TV and even ITV are back in the boxing business.

Channels like BT Sport also have plenty of boxing content and if rumours were to be believed, they might very well be back in the live boxing business on a more wholesome basis, sooner rather than later.

It almost seems every week there is a world title fight going on somewhere around the world. It has to be said that the general standard of professional events being put together by promoters is much better than what it was a few years back. They've upped their game, they've had no choice in reality.

Sports like mixed martial arts promoted by giant brands like the UFC, have shown new ways of promoting a combat sport in today's modern day technologically driven world, where consumers expect more than ever before.

Separate to TV deals flying in left, right and center, the sport and its participants drive a huge amount of social media activity between the different networks out there including the likes of Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

Fight fans seem to be debating online more than ever on the sport and no doubt the added exposure the Mayweather vs Pacquiao fight has brought would have greatly helped this.

Boxing manager and power player Al Haymon in the US is making significant moves in changing different areas in the sport, with a mooted plan that includes ultimately having his own boxing league under one roof and fighters competing for one unified belt in each weight division, like in the old days.

Boxing has always generated a lot of pay per view revenue at the highest level, you only need to look at Mayweather and Pacquiao's last 10 PPV numbers to see that.

But it is the new increased coverage and exposure, coupled with the consistent quality of great match ups, that's really put a spring back in the step of the sweet science this year, in my opinion.

Even last year showed what kind of magic the sport can still conjure up, when the right fight is put on at the right time. When Carl Froch fought George Groves last year at Wembley stadium in London in front of an incredible 80,000 roaring fans, the event shattered multiple records for it's size.

Boxing is once again in the middle of a genuinely exciting and growing time as a sport. No matter what any of the naysayers say, boxing is alive and well and quickly returning to main stream media, where it belongs.

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