I've seen a lot of complaints about the undercard in Wilder vs Fury as well as people saying that they don't care, the main event is the only thing that matters when deciding whether to purchase it or not. I'm in the first camp, I want an evening of great 50/50 contests to set the stage for the final event. If they're great and the final match sucks it takes the edge off as at least I've enjoyed the build-up. I especially like it when a hitherto unheralded fighter makes a name for themselves on a big cad as it almost feels like you're witnessing a new force emerging in the division. I've no interest in seeing the mismatches that littered the card the other night. In fact a poor undercard like that can put me off the main event as it feels like an insult, like our purchase is taken for granted. What's your take on PPV undercards?
As we approach another PPV and decide whether or not to fork out for it or join @Jurgen and peer through his neighbours curtains, it seems like a good time to continue the amazing discussion this post provoked.
I don't think I can really add anything to what's already been said, but my two penn'orth is that if the undercard is unmitigated shite, then the £25 asking fee seems like an insult and I just go into the garden, burn £25, then go to send the video to the broadcaster before realising I forgot to take a video and have just burned £25 for no reason. I like finding new fighters to follow on healthy undercards. I'm not the most knowledgeable on these boards so it happens often. And as you suggested, the main event is so often complete smeg that the only redeeming feature of the event might be a back-and-forth between two fellas who you've never heard of before. I've just seen the contradiction between those two paragraphs. I want to find new fighters, but I don't want an undercard of nobodies. I feel like this thread was actually a better discussion before I jumped in with my size 11 idiot boots. Sorry pal.
I would expect top entertainment for £24.99 including 3-4 very good undercard fights. Don't think that is an unreasonable expectation.
Undercards became really important when Tyson went to jail. Don King used to load his undercards with three or four world title fights. I loved that period. For most of boxing history, though, undercards weren't a big deal (especially when Bob Arum is involved). Arum is notorious for bad undercards. When King was delivering a half-dozen title fights on a card, Arum was filling his undercards with Butterbean and Mia St. John. Arum came up with Ali. And Ali's undercards were typically poor. Ali was the star.
I always hope for a good co-feature. My gripe is I hate showcase fights and would rather watch two less heralded top 10 guys go at it than show off a prospect in a mismatch.
The best undercards are the ones that surprise you with controversy or unexpected displays of heart and determination.
