Aug 16 | Itauma v Whyte, Cacace v Ford, Ball v Goodman

Is this show gonna be on PPV?

 

People keep throwing the word monopoly around when it comes to Turki and boxing, but let’s be real — that’s not happening.

Even in oil — where Saudi makes its real money — they don’t have full control. They’re a major player, sure, but not a monopoly. They influence prices, not dictate them. The only thing they truly control is their own country — because it’s a dictatorship.

Boxing? It’s chaos by design. Too many second-order effects: rival promoters, fractured networks, alphabet belts, regional loyalties. You can’t centralise a sport that thrives on fragmentation.

At best, Turki could build a Premier League-style breakaway — a curated stable of elites under Riyadh’s spotlight. But that doesn’t unify the sport. It just widens the gap between the 0.01% eating and the 99.99% waiting on crumbs.

And let’s be honest — he’s not even making money. He’s burning hundreds of millions to rent relevance. That’s not a takeover. That’s an expensive illusion.

 

Whyte looked terrible against Frankllin, didn't see his last two fights though. Can't see anything but a win for Moses, unless Dillon is juiced up, even then It probably wouldn't have an effect.

 

Hypothetical

If there was no Saudi involvement in boxing, I am 100% certain that the fight would have taken place for whatever loot was on the table.

Who else are both going to fight for more money?

Neither British Level fighters have been chasing World Titles and Eubank has form losing pens.

 

He looked completely washed against Hammer and Tetteh. Has literally stuck it out for the Saudi loot (who can blame him) but it’s going to be a brutal career closure.

 

Just like I said, too many mercenaries to create a monopoly

 

lol at "unless Dillon is juiced up"... as if he hasn't been for every single match in his career.

 

I'd say David Adeleye gets his head boxed off?

 

Exactly, the model ultimately fails because it’s not built on structure — it’s built on overpayment and opportunism.

The promoters aren’t unified — they’re just lining up to exploit the Saudi war chest while it’s still open. They’re treating Turki like he’s Santa Claus: free gifts for everyone, no questions asked.

But once the money tightens — and it will — the unity disappears.
Boxing’s still boxing. The chaos comes back. And everyone goes right back to protecting their own turf.

Turki’s just trying to do on a global scale what the old cartel of Duff, Astaire, Barrett, and Lawless once did in the UK — and the irony is, it was Warren who disrupted that whole system. Full circle.

 

Oil is not a monopoly that you can simply take over as assets lie within individual states and territorial waters and are often state owned. Saudi Aramco IS a monopoly in Saudi Arabia. The reason they have so much "cash" is because they floated Aramco on the stock exchange.

In boxing everything is controlled by money so that gives Turki a mandate to do whatever he wants. He hasn't unified the promoters, he's paid them all off. The same as he will do to the alphabet organisations and governing bodies who are barely holding on as it is. If they are able to successfully "purchase" a world cup I doubt the likes Robert Smith and his mob will present much of a challenge or Mauricio Suliman who already appears to be enjoying the Saudi "hospitality" a little too much.

And I agree, once he is done with the show or Turki falls out of favour with the King they will drop us like a hot stone.

 

Solid points — especially around the money and short-term leverage. No doubt Turki’s got power right now. But if we’re talking lasting control, history shows it takes more than deep pockets to own this sport…

Turki missed a trick not putting Don King on retainer.

Yeah, he’s past his prime — but this is the guy who went from a jail cell to promoting the Rumble in the Jungle in just three years. By 1974, he was orchestrating the biggest fight in boxing history and went on to practically run the heavyweight division through the entire ‘80s.

There’s not a trick that man hasn’t seen. Scale that model globally and you’ve got the sport sewn up — with far less waste. Hell, King might’ve even taught them how not to blow a billion dollars trying to buy control of a sport that’s never really been for sale.

And let’s be honest — King would’ve fit right in with the Saudi regime. Flash, control, spectacle, ego — he’s been doing Riyadh Season since the ‘70s.

And while they throw millions around for fireworks and face-offs, you’ve got to feel for Mick Hennessy — a guy who mortgaged his house to back Hughie Fury, got deserted by the very talent he developed, and now watches from the sidelines as others carve up the Turki cake.

 

Great shame for Big Mick, he was in the right place but at the wrong time.

 

It's not hypothetical, it's what happened. What your presenting is in actual fact hypothetical