Becoming a villain to get paid

Eubank did .made plenty of dosh people paid the same money to see him lose as win.if there was money involved I would do it .plenty of people would like to see me have a hammering.

 

This. Its part of show business. Floyd was always a great boxer, but was pretty stale personality wise before his Money Mayweather gimick. It helped make him a household name.

 

I've been watching American boxing for the last 80 years.
All African American star boxers from Johnson to Louis to Ali Tyson to Mayweather play the villain because that is what America's majority accept.
Lennox Lewis didn't have to play this role because he is UK/Canadian.
If he were American born, he'd have been the villain too.

Strange how the origin of "Villain' is British and used to describe the Villagers under Feudalism who were confined to the villages controlled by the lords they served..

 

Joe Louis played the villain?

 

Yep!
Saddest thing I ever saw was Louis in a wheel chair in front of Ceasars Palace as a greeter accepting $1 bills from guests.
Countries don't treat heroes like that.

 

You're not 80.

Ray Leonard was hated by some for being popular with white people. He was a mega star and was no villain. He was more the flag waiving golden boy type.

Tommy Hearns did not play the villain. He was just himself.

There were no bigger stars than these guys in their day.

Tyson did not start out as a villain. He drifted into it over time. You could argue he was more popular when he was polite. The difference is, he was more popular when he was knocking people out.

Ray, Tommy, nice Mike Tyson, were all mega stars because they did not just win, to borrow a phrase from Cus D'Amato, they won in an exciting fashion.

Only boring fighters need to find ways out of the ring to sell tickets, no matter their color.

 

I guess that's one way to look at it.

 

Sadly is the only way some people would watch the fights and casuals bring the money.

 

Ali did this deliberately from the start. He was copying the antics of a well-known wrestler Gorgeous George who made big money playing the villain.

Ali must have been surprised when his playful "villain" antics also make him a hero!!

 

okay Louis never played the villain, he was a beloved american hero. Ali became a much loved fighter later on, and tyson despite playing the villain was loved too, they loved the brutality of what he did

 

Ali became "safe" after he was given Parkinsons Symptoms.
Prior to that, when he was active, the only product endorsement he received was from Raid and he was definitely not loved but feared for his position in the NOI.
No matter how well loved an African American boxer is, they seem to always be America's villains.

 

The only product Ali, the most known man in the world received when active was an endorsement from RAID roach spray.
Neither Louis or Ali tried or wanted the villain role. That's just American culture that forced it upon them.

 

Only years later did people start to like him. Before that it was this...

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