Kovalev is the New Standard Fighters

If that was really the case,
Lomachenko,
Khytrov,
Kovalev
Gradovich,
Redkach
Fonfara
Szpilka
Beterbiev
Bute
Derevyanchenko
Quigley
Shabransky
Gvozdyk
Mekhontsev

etc

Wouldnt have all set up shop in America/Canada.

As of right now, theres more money in North America in boxing than anywhere else outside of very specific circumstances.

 

No offence dude, you are not really very knowledgeable of this topic. For one big boxing events in Russia do pretty big gates and also like all high profile sports, the sponsorship money can be huge, even if it hard to understand if makes commercial sense for the sponsors. Just look at the hockey salaries in Russia versus gates!

Kovalev made a choice to make it the the US, but it is much tougher to become a big earner there than in Russia, maybe the ceiling is higher, but he is doing it the hard way.

 

Elite fighter he is what boxing should be about , this fight againt Pascal should be way bigger

 

Astounding ignorance (well if you are American, probably not that astounding). A lot of the fighters you have included in there are Ukrainian, their country was bankrupt even before the recent war! Then you include Polish, Romanian fighters etc. Russia is a whole different kettle of fish.

Russia is a big country and is a huge economy driven by huge oil production (although obviously hurting from the collapse in the oil price). Sponsorship dollars in Russian sport can be mindboggling, you should see some of the salaries football and hockey players are earning there. This holds true to several boxers which have cornered the market there - Kovalev could have done it too, being a world champ, but he didn't

 

Then why didnt they go fight in Germany? Or Britain? Or Russia?

Many of those fighters are Russian, why dont they stay and fight in Russia if the money is so good?

For the record Im from Ireland and nearly every top Irish fighter ever had to go ply his trade in America too. Its just a fact that thats where the money is, and because of that fact, its where the best fighters are, so it means the best training/sparring is to be had there.

 

Out of the fighters you mentioned there are only 3 high profile Russian ones - Kovalev, Gradovich and Beterbiev. Kovalev and Gradovich went to America because he they were never recognised as talents in the Russian amateur system and ignored as a professionals, so they had no choice. I don't know Bererbiev story. And if you have read any of my previous posts, if you are a high profile boxer on the world stage like Povetkin and Lebedev were, you can make a lot of money fighting in front of huge audiences and having your fights shown on the main state channel with all the sponsorship.

A Ukrainian or a Polish fighter can't do that in a current political environment.

You certainly make big bold statements about a topic you know nothing about. Like I have said before, of course the overall pool of money for boxcing is higher than the US, but there are niches for star boxers that can be extremely lucrative and certainly much easier than trying to become a PPV star in the states.

 

It depends how he is marketed. For example Chagaev, who is Uzbek actually has had his fights on terrestrial TV in Russia and has fought in front of a big crowd in Moscow before.

 

Many fighters travel and fight in foreign countries when on the way up. Its what they do in world title fights that is often different.

 

KO4clev feast on welsh rabbit.

 

Chagaev is ethnic tatar from uzbekistan that makes a difference too.

 

Russia has quite a few high profile MMA athletes from Chechnya though, I don't know how popular they are, but they do fight in Russia.

 

Mekhontsev? A gold medallist in the Olympics for Russia and he goes to America.

Oh, and I forgot Provodnikov, Grachev and Korobov

 

devil:ldevil Slayer **** yea! The only fighter recently I hear any metal in his entrances is Lucas Matthysse. Vitali used to come in with Hells Bells Ac\Dc and Pavlik with Here to Stay from Korn. Fighters should come in with music to destroy and go to war, not dance the night away.