Why is boxing so divided?

Dwarf.Shortage

As it says on the tin, why are there so many different titles in each weight category in boxing and how plausible is it to unify them and have one champion in each weight class? is there a will to do this inside boxing or are people happy with things the way they are?

Henno30

Pretty much because of this

weemcd

1) Sanctioning fee's - for every belt that's out there, somebody is probably paying a sanctioning fee to an organisation every time they defend that belt.
2) Promoters - promoters need stars who have a high profile to sell tickets and possibly pay per view, only one champ per weightclass reduces the number of draws they have. It is in their best interest to have as many belt holders as possible in their stable of fighters.
3) TV companies - (closely linked with 2) need people to tune in, to sell advertising, product placement and get their pay per view money. A fight becomes instantly easier to sell once people see a belt up for grabs, it adds a little prestige.

Fighters themselves also have various reasons to fight for certain organisations, links through family, friends, their promoters, coaches etc. the list goes on.

It could all be simplified down into one reason, however.



Everybody has to get paid.

Henno30

weemcd wrote: »

1) Sanctioning fee's - for every belt that's out there, somebody is probably paying a sanctioning fee to an organisation every time they defend that belt.
2) Promoters - promoters need stars who have a high profile to sell tickets and possibly pay per view, only one champ per weightclass reduces the number of draws they have. It is in their best interest to have as many belt holders as possible in their stable of fighters.
3) TV companies - (closely linked with 2) need people to tune in, to sell advertising, product placement and get their pay per view money. A fight becomes instantly easier to sell once people see a belt up for grabs, it adds a little prestige.

Fighters themselves also have various reasons to fight for certain organisations, links through family, friends, their promoters, coaches etc. the list goes on.

It could all be simplified down into one reason, however.


Everybody has to get paid.

Yep.

People unfamiliar to boxing hear the names of organisations like the WBA or the Nevada State Athletic Commission, and understandably assume that these are comparable to other sporting organisations like the FA or the IRFU.

But they really aren't. Boxing is actually much easier to understand if you see these organisations for what they truly are, businesses competing for the right to sanction or host big events.

They're part of the reason boxing as a sport finds it so hard to make progress on critical issues like fighter safety or drug testing. Any time one of the various bodies insists on upholding certain standards, a rival organisation (cough Texas) will undercut them and tell the parties involved that they won't have to worry about any of that stuff if they come and do business with them.

It's the wild west of unrestrained market forces, with a meat trade thrown into the bargain.