The stuff you often thought of as crappy is actually the thing that sells these days.
Case in point is Floyd Mayweather’s hyped exhibition bout with YouTube star Logan Paul.
Last week, Mayweather formally announced that he would be returning to the ring in June when he engages Logan in an event that is really a freak show based on the personalities involved.
Mayweather hasn’t had a real fight since beating Andre Berto in September 1995 although he figured in a boxing contest in August 1997 against MMA icon Conor McGregor.
MMA followers lauded the McGregor clash, bragging that it took the American all of ten rounds to pull the plug on the Irishman’s bid.
Funny. Very funny.
Boxing men knew Mayweather carried the fight into the late rounds to make the impression that top MMA bets are so talented and gifted that they could also excel in boxing.
The thing is, if Mayweather wanted that fight to end in the very first round, he could have done so without much sweat given his superb skills.
This early, this Mayweather madness is sure to make a killing financially.
Mayweather and Paul have combined Instagram followers of 46 million.
To further hype the fight, Paul’s camp pulled off a stunt when Logan’s brother Jake, who has 15.5 million Instagram followers, took Mayweather’s cap during a face-off.
A commotion ensued immediately and punches were said to have been thrown and the video went viral as it overshadowed the official weighin that was taking place at around the same time in Dallas where Saul “Canelo” Alvarez was taking the spotlight.
On the local front, the same thing happened Sunday afternoon when John Riel Casimero, yeah, you heard it right, the reigning World Boxing Organization bantamweight titleholder, went toe-to-toe with a YouTube personality named Billy Jack.
I hadn’t heard of that poor fellow before that I even called him Black Jack when I asked the help of ring announcer and Casimero point man Marc Yao to provide some details about their “sparring session.”
I didn’t get to see them spar live but the video of Powcast Sports got so many hits that I came to the realization that boxing has truly evolved.
I did catch some highlights of the session and it was obvious that all it was after was to invite more subscribers since more subscribers meant cold cash.
Boxing has also gone so shallow these days that the sport’s solid track record is taking a beating from all the craziness.
There was a time when discussions about boxing was real serious stuff.
Apparently, things have morphed into something else.
And yes, you guessed it right. I am not a fan of this fad.
You can call me old-fashioned or whatever you like.
Boxing is not a game. It’s a sport. And mind you, not just an ordinary sport.
