The Transnational Boxing Rankings Board An Opening Bell for Reform The purchase of THE RING by Golden Boy Promotions in 2007 provoked immediate questions about its independence. The dismissal of Nigel Collins and several editorial staff in 2011 and a series of questionable ratings decisions by the new editors were followed by an overhaul of the championship policy on May 3rd. At the center of the controversy was the provision allowing first and second-ranked contenders to face third, fourth, and even fifth-ranked contenders for vacant championships. A hue and cry was raised in the red-light district of sports. THE RING, which had led the way for clarity and reform in boxing for the better part of eighty-four years, appeared to relinquish its mission. Three members of its ratings advisory panel resigned in protest. They didnt go quietly. Tim Starks of The Queensberry Rules published The Horrible New Ring Magazine Championship Policy on May 4th. Springs Toledo published Occupy the Ring on May 9th in The Sweet Science and the next day Cliff Rold weighed in with The Ring Changes the Rules, Further Clouds Title Scene in Boxing Scene. It wasnt just hand-wringing. Today, boxing writers, bloggers, commentators, and fans mime a ten count over a magazine that landed a left hook on itself. Were good at that. Toledo wrote. We need to do more. We did. More... http://www.thesweetscience.com/news/articles/15395-introducing-the-transnational-rankings-board
Interesting. Rankings are pretty much dime-a-dozen but this does seem more likely to capture who is and is not a lineal champion in the future, unlike The Ring. Having the cruiserweight belt vacant is an excellent start on that end. I'm sure doing the same for heavyweight however will raise some eyebrows and provoke the ire of one particular fanbase.
This is the best part of the charter and really encapsulates why I found The Ring's changes so annoying: I also like how they have a transparent voting policy for when they will and will not go against an official decision. Though given the 175 rankings I'd really like to know who supported the official decision in Cloud-Campillo from that group.
