Master Index of Archived Threads


Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Super-psyched. Will be buying the PPV and looking forward to it

1 votes

Somewhat. Not shelling out the dough but am gathering with others for a viewing party.

3 votes

Casual interest in the outcome but not paying that price.

1 votes

No interest at all

14 votes

Frayed Knot May 01 2015 06:31 AM

Everyone knows that boxing ain't what it used to be in terms of its place in the sports mindset of this country even as one could make the argument that the interest in those sports happenings which could be classified as **BIG EVENTS** has never been higher. And good lord there are an awful lot of folks who are trying to turn this into the event of events - even as many of those same folks will admit that it's happening at least five years past the primes of both guys. So why do I get the feeling that this is largely a 'top-down' thing, that while the sports segment of the chattering classes are all ginned up over this thing -- they get to hang in Vegas, there'll be celebrities there, they get to cover not just an event but AN EVENT!!!! -- there's not an equal man on the street interest to match? Now there's a good chance that the P-P-V figures will prove otherwise (either that or a whole lotta people are going to be taking a financial bath here) but I wonder how many of those buys -- [u:2x1ofnax]at $99.95[/u:2x1ofnax] -- will be generated via folks who were convinced, via saturation pre-coverage, what a must-see this is. IOW, is the interest driving the hype or the hype driving the interest? So anyway, I don't get the idea that this is much of a boxing crowd here but I thought I'd ask anyway. Personally I wouldn't buy it if it were priced at $9.95, and if it were $0.95 I'd check the rest of the TV listings first for alternatives. But, as always, your mileage may vary.

themetfairy May 01 2015 06:42 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

No interest at all. I don't know when this thing is, and I don't care.

Benjamin Grimm May 01 2015 07:13 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Boxing lost me decades ago. I noticed that it was the front page story on USA Today this morning and that surprised me for two reasons: I had no idea that there was a "big fight" going on, and I never thought that boxing would ever again make the cover of any newspaper.

Ceetar May 01 2015 08:00 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Boxing was never my thing. My uncle and father used to talk it up more when I was little, and I find the stories about Tyson and Ali Frasier and what not pretty interesting, but no, no interest in this fight, or in fighting in general as a sport. It's definitely a top-down thing, though yes. And there's certainly a "Hey, we should do a remote in Vegas" aspect to pumping it up. Of course, you see that all the time. It's part of the reason there's always been backlash about cold weather super bowls.

Edgy MD May 01 2015 08:11 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Wow, 0-0-0-5. That's not much of a vote. Given a chance, I would have clicked, "I'm a filthy abolitionist with regard to boxing." What a festival of stupidity and exploitation it is. The notion that whatever relevance remained has been lost to an even more stupid and hateful bloodsport is an amazing tribute to our culture of regulatory negligence.

dgwphotography May 01 2015 08:14 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Nope.

d'Kong76 May 01 2015 08:24 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

I'll dvr it next Saturday afternoon... [youtube:3grffoyv]P2AZH4FeGsc[/youtube:3grffoyv] ...not.

RealityChuck May 01 2015 09:22 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Boxing has become a niche sport in the US. There are fewer boxing fans than WNBA fans these days and I don't think it'll come back. There are too many problems to overcome before you can win back the audience that it had in the 50s, or even the 70s. It was killed by a whole bunch of factors: pay per view, multiple boxing authorities, divisions, and champions, a lack of local boxing events, to name a few.

A Boy Named Seo May 01 2015 09:47 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

I watched a lot of boxing with my dad when I was a kid and I think post-Tyson, it did get pushed way to the periphery on the US sports landscape, replaced by MMA, which I've never had a desire to look at once. All those things Chuck mentioned set boxing up for a big topple, and UFC is way slimier and more violent than boxing, so naturally it left boxing in the dust. My Saturday sports depth chart goes: Clips/Spurs game 7 -> 99.6% Mets/Nats -> 0.4% Boxing match -> free margaritas I likely wouldn't give a single shit about it otherwise, but am going to a lil party where the fight will be showed. I'll be on the small TV in the kitchen biting my nails and watching the Clippers.

John Cougar Lunchbucket May 01 2015 09:54 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

No interest, will be at Mets game anyway, but just came back from Key Food where the stockboy was all pumped up about it, asking me if I was gonna watch, and who I wanted to win. I said, I just wanna see a good fight.

Frayed Knot May 01 2015 11:59 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

The other thing which I find puzzling about the interest (or the hype) in this fight is the two combatants themselves. Yes, both have had good and long careers with Mayweather being undefeated and approaching Marciano's undefeated record while Pacquiao is/was (I think) a long time title holder. But it's not like this is the traditionally glamorous heavyweight division and neither one, as mentioned, is in their prime. Mayweather, to put it bluntly, comes off as an asshole and has in fact served jail time for hitting women and has other incidents that he hasn't been convicted on. Pacquiao seems more quiet and likable but is Filipino and so doesn't have a large and natural ethnic appeal outside of several small-ish pockets here and there and has lost several of his recent fights including once by KO. Throw in that this fight should have been put together five years ago (Mayweather seemed to be ducking it - possibly because Pacquiao only NOW seems vulnerable) and I don't get the appeal, or at least the SIZE of the appeal unless it's that the remaining boxing community is so happy just to have any big-ish fight that they're going to celebrate the hell out of this one because it's the only game in town. But, man, you'd think some of these writers and broadcasters are getting a cut of the gate based on their excitement.

d'Kong76 May 01 2015 12:03 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

A Boy Named Seo wrote: Boxing match -> free margaritas I likely wouldn't give a single shit about it otherwise, but am going to a lil party where the fight will be showed. I might have voted differently if free tequila was included in one of the choices. We used to have pay-per-view keg parties during the Tyson years, great fun. I forget which fight it was he won like in the first minute and 2/3 of the people were outside smoking and whatever and missed it. It was good thing the hat was passed around early that evening. They should really ban the sport in my opinion, but it won't happen any time soon with all the money being made. I guess it's better to keep it somewhat legitimate otherwise it would just go underground like dog and cock fights or worse.

d'Kong76 May 01 2015 12:08 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

I just looked at Tyson's wiki page, amazing how many fights he won in the first round. There's a list of pay-per-view fights and the dates are not in the time frame I was thinking. I guess most of them were just cable fights.

A Boy Named Seo May 01 2015 12:33 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

d'Kong76 wrote: We used to have pay-per-view keg parties during the Tyson years, great fun. I forget which fight it was he won like in the first minute and 2/3 of the people were outside smoking and whatever and missed it. It was good thing the hat was passed around early that evening. I don't know if this is the one you were talking about, but I remember that Peter McNeely fight was a pretty big PPV. It was over before the first bell rang when Tyson just stared the poor bastard down. 89 seconds, he lasted. [youtube]OkMyOPhp3_M[/youtube]

John Cougar Lunchbucket May 01 2015 12:44 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Told this story before but the Buster Douglas result was about the most shocking thing I ever heard. At the time I couldn't imagine Tyson would ever lose a fight. I was sure he'd be a champion for a decade or more.

A Boy Named Seo May 01 2015 12:58 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Yeah my friends & I couldn't believe what we were watching. The only thing that made sense was that Tyson just sleep-walked through his training before the fight (which had to be part of it, right? I don't remember). Imagine being the poor sap who had to fight a pissed-off, motivated Tyson in the next match.

d'Kong76 May 01 2015 01:04 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Seo wrote: 89 seconds, he lasted Thanks, maybe... 89 kinda rings a bell!

Frayed Knot May 01 2015 01:51 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

d'Kong76 wrote: I just looked at Tyson's wiki page, amazing how many fights he won in the first round. There's a list of pay-per-view fights and the dates are not in the time frame I was thinking. I guess most of them were just cable fights. IIRC, PPVs were sort of just coming into vogue during the back half of Tyson's career as I remember watching much of his earlier stuff and I've never PPV'd in my life. They of course existed before that but the distribution possibilities were so limited that it wasn't always a good marketing strategy. The McNeely fight was funny as I recall some WFAN caller ranting about what a ripoff the fight had been (maybe $30-40 bucks) and how what really sucked was that "they're going to make us pay for the next crappy fight too", and I'm thinking, 'did you even stop to think about the fact that you've already decided that you're powerless to NOT buy the next Tyson-v-tomato can is exactly why they're going to charge you for it again, and maybe for even more money next time'? For Tyson-Douglas I was at a Vermont ski weekend having a good time at a big, rollicking, A-Frame style bar with loud music, etc. and, although aware that the fight was that weekend, it was the furthest thing from my mind that night (remember the fight was in Japan). Suddenly during a time when the band was on a break, the house music suddenly went off, a voice came on to announce that Tyson had been knocked out, and the music went right back on so quickly that I wasn't sure I had heard what I thought I had just heard. So at that point, in those pre-smart phone days, I wasn't positive of the result or get any details on it until reading the newspapers the next day.

Mets – Willets Point May 01 2015 02:41 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

I saw this touted as "The Fight of the Century" which seems to me to be faint praise, since boxing peaked last century.

d'Kong76 May 01 2015 03:19 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

For s&g's I just looked at StubHub to see what's available... The best single seat is going for $53,040 You can get three together on the floor for $45,500 (what a bargain!) The worst tickets range from ~$1-3,000.

Ashie62 May 01 2015 07:34 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

This fight harkens back to Ali-Frazier 1 at MSG. the ultimate fight buildup to me. I am the one vote for super-interested by PPV. Money is replaceable and overrated.

Frayed Knot May 01 2015 08:04 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Wow, really??!?! Not that you're buying the fight (I don't try to tell folks what to do with their money) but that this one is even in the same universe as Ali-Fraizer I. - the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world vs ... hell, I don't even know what these two are fighting for. - both fighters then in their primes vs both current ones past their sell-by dates. - the following for boxing then vs now - the aura and backstory of both those fighters - particularly Ali with his promotion skills and enforced layoff

SteveJRogers May 01 2015 08:14 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

I'll take pro-wrestling, even over UFC. At least I know the two combatants are fighting in a pre-planned choreographed manner, complete with storylines, and despite the action being full contact, they aren't actually trying to kill each other.

SteveJRogers May 01 2015 08:19 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Oh, and if you ask me to pluck down money for a pro wrestling PPV, I'm invested in the entire 3 plus hour event, which generally includes a number of matches on the undercard that could very well steal the show from the main event, or their storylines could be more engaging than said main event match. As opposed to boxing where...well Ali-Frazier I was brought up, who can even tell you, or even cares, who was on the undercard at MSG that night?

Edgy MD May 01 2015 08:29 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

It kind of reminds me of the year Smarty Jones was going for the Triple Crown, where an intense campaign of pre-event hype almost convinced people they cared like they hadn't in 30 years, and they realized right quick that they didn't care at all.

Rockin' Doc May 01 2015 09:03 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

The last time I was really overly interseted in a boxing match was for the fight between "Marvelous" Marvin Hagler and Thomas "Hit Man" Hearns in 1985. 7-8 guys from grad school pitched in to cover the HBO (or PPV) cost to see the fight. Our wives cooked chili and hot dogs and we had a lot of beer on hand. We had a great time and the party lasted a lot longer than the fight. I watched a few Tyson fights and Holyfield fights back in the day, but I haven't watched a boxing match (outside of some Olympic bouts, but that a completely different animal) in 10-15 years. There is nothing about the upcoming "Fight of the Century" that compels me to start watching boxing now.

Nymr83 May 01 2015 09:12 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Edgy MD wrote: It kind of reminds me of the year Smarty Jones was going for the Triple Crown, where an intense campaign of pre-event hype almost convinced people they cared like they hadn't in 30 years, and they realized right quick that they didn't care at all. i think the horse race is so much easier to care about though, because its ultimately 5 minutes of free television at a normal time of day, not an hour of $99 at midnight on the east coast.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr May 01 2015 10:54 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

I am required by ethnic obligation to show an interest. Also, the whole fam doesn't get together very often, and since we have relatives visiting, we're doing a thing centered around this on Saturday night. But yeah, even if boxing weren't over, and these guys weren't past their primes, and boxing weren't anachronistic bloodsport... it's a question of rooting for the genius defensive technician who's been running away from this fight for a decade AND OH YEAH BY THE WAY is a pretty intractable, unapologetic serial abuser of women/bleeding asshole... or the naif with a shocking amount of political power for a borderline-illiterate (welcome to the cult of Filipino celebrity) who talks about homosexuality and condom usage being a sin.

SteveJRogers May 02 2015 05:32 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Nymr83 wrote: Edgy MD wrote: It kind of reminds me of the year Smarty Jones was going for the Triple Crown, where an intense campaign of pre-event hype almost convinced people they cared like that hadn't in 30 years, and they realized right quick that they didn't care at all. i think the horse race is so much easier to care about though, because its ultimately 5 minutes of free television at a normal time of day, not an hour of $99 at midnight on the east coast. Which goes back to the undercard. No one shelling out $99 is going to know, or care about other bouts on the card tonight. Just like history doesn't easily recall the other fights at MSG the night of 3/8/71 that served as the Ali-Fraizer I's undercard. Its more about creating a happening to be seen at, or "you don't want to miss this, so here is an excuse to have a party" than cultivating an actual fanbase for the sport.

Edgy MD May 02 2015 05:33 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

It's amazing it took until page two to bring up Mayweather's history of domestic carnage.

Frayed Knot May 02 2015 05:57 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Many have noted the Kentucky Derby and the fight occurring just hours apart as both sports long for their glory days and there's a vocal presence within each who insist that those days could be just around the corner once again. - with boxing it's the notion that all the sport needs is a charismatic American heavyweight. - the horsey set, meanwhile, is convinced that a TC winner will drive folks back to the track on a regular basis But both have become not just niche sports but EVENT sports. A charismatic American heavyweight will generate interest (and money) is THAT guy's fights but it's not going to bring about weekly cards at the Armory that'll become water cooler talk on Mondays. On the race thing, it wasn't just SMARTY JONES, it's been virtually every horse who's won the Derby recently since by definition the KD winner ALWAYS has a shot at the Triple Crown. So up cranks the hype machine so as to get better ratings for the Preakness and Belmont, but I think these racing folks are kidding themselves if they really believe that when it does happen one year (and you'd think it would have to just by random chance alone) that it's going to mean some turn-around for the sport. Gone are the days when racing had an almost complete monopoly on legalized gambling in this country, and those days ain't coming back. Edgy MD wrote: It's amazing it took until page two to bring up Mayweather's history of domestic carnage. I did bring it up earlier.

Ashie62 May 02 2015 03:15 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Frayed Knot wrote: Wow, really??!?! Not that you're buying the fight (I don't try to tell folks what to do with their money) but that this one is even in the same universe as Ali-Fraizer I. - the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world vs ... hell, I don't even know what these two are fighting for. - both fighters then in their primes vs both current ones past their sell-by dates. - the following for boxing then vs now - the aura and backstory of both those fighters - particularly Ali with his promotion skills and enforced layoff You spelled Frazier wrong.

RealityChuck May 02 2015 04:06 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Boxing was one of the big four US sports from around 1920 to the mid-70s. It started to decline in the 60s.As I mentioned, the factors were many: Overexposure. In the 50s, bosxing seemed made for TV, and there were matches evey week. People got tired of the poor matches and gravitated to championship ones. Underexposure. By the 60s, boxing was focused almost entirely on the heavyweights. There now were too feqw bouts, and as the free broadcasts of the sport dwindled (TV started running bouts on tape several days later because the promoters didn't want to hurt the gate). Lack of stars. Once Muhammad Ali retired, no one could fill his shoes. Tyson came closest, but his personality was too mean, and once Cus D'Amato (his original trrainer and a boxing legend) died, he got out of control. No young fans. Since everything switched to PPV, kids were neveer exposed to boxing. Rise of other fighting sports. They compete for those who might be interested. Few local events. The small venues were the lifeblood of boxing, but the number of boxing gyms are a fraction of whet they used to be. You could go out and see local boxers all the time. Boxers from the US are now an oddity. It's different in other counties, where boxing is quite healthy. Lack of interest. Boxing was always the sport of the underclass . As Americans became more prosperous, their children tried other sports (the dangers of the sport also mean parents are less likely to be supportive). In the US, basketball has replaced it.

d'Kong76 May 02 2015 04:10 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Excellent post!

Mets Guy in Michigan May 02 2015 04:11 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Mayweather is from Grand Rapids. I've met him a couple of times. He's done some nice things for the community and the public schools. He did appear at one school event wearing a t-shirt with Che Guevara's image on it. I wondered if Floyd had any idea who Che was, and how many people he killed. He was in town for something two years ago and there were like 10 identical black SUVs parked outside the hotel. He must have some entourage. I remember growing up in the 1970s my Dad and I used to watch the big Ali fights when they were on network TV. That was fun. But I'd never consider paying to watch on on TV. Does it seem odd that people get dressed in tuxes and such to attend boxing matches. Does it seem less barbaric if you are dressed up?

Ceetar May 02 2015 06:38 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Mets Guy in Michigan wrote: Does it seem odd that people get dressed in tuxes and such to attend boxing matches. Does it seem less barbaric if you are dressed up? If anything it makes it worse. It elicits images of upper class watching gladiator slaves fight for their amusement. But don't go by me, I think it's silly to get up to be in the audience of anything, save maybe a huge Oscars type event that the audience is regularly filmed.

Frayed Knot May 02 2015 07:50 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Ashie62 wrote: You spelled Frazier wrong. The in that case I withdraw everything I said.

Frayed Knot May 02 2015 08:07 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

RealityChuck wrote: Boxing was one of the big four US sports from around 1920 to the mid-70s. It started to decline in the 60s. As I mentioned, the factors were many: Corruption didn't help either.

Mets – Willets Point May 02 2015 08:42 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

Compared with boxing and horse racing, the other big American sport of the 20th century - baseball - is doing quite well, despite rumors of its decline.

Mets – Willets Point May 02 2015 11:24 PM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: I am required by ethnic obligation to show an interest. My first thought when I read this was "I didn't know you were Irish."

MFS62 May 03 2015 08:40 AM Re: Interest in the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight?

RealityChuck wrote: Boxing was one of the big four US sports from around 1920 to the mid-70s. It started to decline in the 60s.As I mentioned, the factors were many: Overexposure. In the 50s, bosxing seemed made for TV, and there were matches evey week. People got tired of the poor matches and gravitated to championship ones. Underexposure. By the 60s, boxing was focused almost entirely on the heavyweights. There now were too feqw bouts, and as the free broadcasts of the sport dwindled (TV started running bouts on tape several days later because the promoters didn't want to hurt the gate). I voted no interest and wasn't going to post until I read this. My dad (may he rest in Peace) and I bonded over boxing. He would work late on Friday nights, then stop off on the way home and pick up sandwiches at the local bar. It was the one night I could stay up late and he and I would eat the sandwiches and watch the Friday Night fights on TV. It was the late 40's/early 50s and we saw the legendary greats in all weight classes - Sugar Ray Robinson, Ezzard Charles, Rocky Marciano and others. Over time, my interest in it waned, overtaken by other interests. Thank you, Chuck, for bringing those memories back. Later