Which fighters hurt the popularity of the sport?

Floyd May, Jr. was a snoozefest. He was one of the few fighters who made boxing look like it wasn't a combat sport. Casuals hated him. And even some serious fans couldn't be bothered due to his negotiated stacking the deck.

 

Corbett kind of hurt the sport after Sullivan’s galactic popularity through his inactivity. Maybe if he fought more he would be remembered more fondly today.

 

I think that, whatever your style, there was a market for you if you could fight. There have been a lot of guys that weren't huge punchers that were very popular because of their skills and/or their presentation.
I think that, in this century, there are a ton of boxers that hurt the popularity of the sport. Partially because they can't fight. Partially because there are very few good fights any more; somebody is either way outmatched or considerably smaller because of the bs day before weigh ins. And most fighters now- and I blame Ali for this- associate charisma with being obnoxious and rude.
One of the things that really annoys me about boxing today is the need for a faceoff. They stand there nose to nose and talk and run their mouths like women. You are already going to fight, conduct yourself with some dignity.

 

As @dmt and @Seamus have said Wladimir Klitschko and Floyd Mayweather Jr although great boxers spoilt the spolit Wlad for his style and the fact the other best fighter in the Heavyweight Divison was Vitali so fans didn't see him fight the other top guy. Also the proliferation of the belts and title holders in the Heavweights and the sport in general made it confusing for fans so I feel that is and was largely to blame for spoiling the sport. Floyd Mayweather Jr and Manny Pacquiao not fighting earlier didn't help. Mayweather Jr's unbeaten record chasing also devalued boxing especially the fight with Connor McGregor which shoudln't be officially on his record. If he was The Best Ever why didn't he prove it be sticking around and fighting Errol Spence and Terence Crawford? Is there any particular boxers that ruin boxing? the answer is Yes and No. For me the proliferation of Titles, The Broadcasters/Television Networks, Dubious Decisions, Protection of unbeaten records all factor in to hurting the popularity of the sport but boxing wouldn't be boxing without boxers!

 

Hopkins pissed viewers off for a while. I thought he was a great boxer though.

 

None.

Some were more popular than others.If they hurt someone they hurt themselves in their pockets.

 

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Look at Exzard Charles. Boxing popularity took a little dip when he was heavyweight champion simply because he wasn’t Joe Louis. Now we think of him as a true jewel, one of the top ten fighters that ever lived and adore the fact we have his career to look back on.

Holmes is a similar figure.

 

For me it was Mayweather. Doing anything and everything to stack the deck in his favor to keep his 0. The last straw for me was dictating which gloves Maidana could wear or he was going to pull out of the fight. He refused to let Maidana wear a punchers glove while he in return wore Grant's a punchers glove!!!!

 

Dempsey both made the sport into something it hadn't been before, then paralyzed it with inactivity and not facing his greatest threats. In the end, he certainly did more good than bad but he also really derailed the division for quite a while. Tunney didn't help matters as a follow up. Never really recovered till The Brown Bomber.

 

I think that a lot of those guys- John L, Dempsey, Corbett- really hurt the game by not defending often. But they found out that they could make good money without training or fighting and hang around with showgirls instead of sparring partners.

 

Mike Tyson. Floyd Mayweather. Monzon, when he murdered his girlfriend.

 

He brought the general public into the sport. His numbers don't lie.

 

This is false.

"While Maidana's camp argued that Mayweather’s gloves were like "pillows" to negate their power, the Nevada State Athletic Commission consistently approved them because they met all weight and safety requirements."

Maidana was made to switch from a horsehair puncher's glove to a foam puncher's glove. Mayweather wore defensive gloves. You likely have Grant confused with Reyes.

Mayweather won the immediate rematch widely despite being in his late thirties.

 

I'd say Tony Ayala. Got the public interested before being revealed as a complete pos and getting locked away.