It would be nice if the Saudi's with all their money bought the WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO then turned them into one belt.
Can half understand Hearn & Warren calling the Sheikh 'His Excellency' as he's earning them money but the likes of Sam Jones using it on Twitter absolutely desperate to worm his way in makes me chuckle.
I was a bit disappointed by this announcement yesterday. Not the prospect of some Matchroom v Queensberry match-ups - that's great. More the whole "Eddie vs Frank" narrative. Everyone involved has made a big deal about working together for the good of the event, putting aside rivalries. This step is a wet dream for IFL and Boxing Social. Guess we'll have to wait and see the matchups. It would certainly help if Fury vs Joshua was able to headline, with that the narrative of Frank vs Eddie would disappear. As an aside: penny for the thoughts of the Olympians who signed for Boxxer, especially Ben Whittaker. They must be green with envy at this stuff going ahead without them.
Wouldn't surprise me if they didn't headline with AJ vs Fury that this would be on the night before a bigger AJ or Fury card. and they do a two night fight weekend. or alternatively Frank gets some ringers in and signs some international fighters prior to the card. Eddie has the likes of Bam, Haney, Berlanga, Cruz, Bivol, Opetaia, Akhmadaliev etc plus a couple more signings potentially on the way. Those names make a bigger card. Perhaps Frank makes a play for someone like Matias on a short term deal for instance to fight Haney. So they have some UK fights and some worldwide ones. Also i think some of the Olympians are already trying to run contracts down and the only way they stay is to be overpaid again.
Perhaps something along the lines of the below. AJ v Fury Smith v Yarde Hrgovic v Zhang Kieron Conway v Nathan Heaney Dalton Smith v O'Leary Would be pretty sensational if all 5 fights were household names though !
It's pretty clear the Saudis are wanting to create a UFC but for boxing. Hearn and Warren are digging their own graves. By 2025/2026 the Saudis will have all the fighters, their own streaming app, monthly subs and bolt on PPVs with loads of documentaries / training camp footage. Also pumped out onto all the socials for advertisement. Meanwhile Hearn will still be telling Kugan that DAZN is the future.