Mauricio Sulaimán

By Mauricio Sulaimán / Son of José Sulaimán / President of the WBC

The World Boxing Council invariably supports any situation that is beneficial to boxers; including new promotional companies, broadcast platforms, extraordinary tournaments, sponsoring companies, etc … Part of our work as a regulatory body for this sport, is also to promote and offer our platform to support such initiatives.

The WBC worked hard to achieve the very successful Super 6 tournament in the supermiddleweight division by Showtime, so did with the World Boxing Super series . It also works along with Fundación Telmex Telcel to carry out the highly successful Ring Telmex program, which has generated 19 champions, or the SuperFly tournament which is still generating interesting matches involving those fighters.

We are currently experiencing a boxing trend with a wide variety of elements. Influencer and utubers events, participation of athletes from other sports inside the ring, mixed martial arts fighters trying boxing , and retired boxers returning to the ring.

This phenomenon is not new, it has happened in the past, but sporadically as unique and independent events; We saw Muhammad Ali “fight” against the Japanese wrestler Inoki, who never got off the mat and kicked him all the fight; we also saw José Canseco, who stepped into the ring to receive a beating. Too Tall Jones, of the Dallas Cowboys, had six professional fights winning all, and Mickey Rourke used to fight in Japan thrilling his fans , bolstered by his fame as a Hollywood gígolo.

The current trend is not something sporadic, it has already emerged on various fronts and it seems to be something continuous; obviously all based on the money that has been generated. It all started during the pandemic. The world paused and stopped, there were no sporting events for several months and the confinement led us to a mental change, so, full of nostalgia, we started doing things at home that we missed and gave us passion and pleasure in life.

Mike Tyson returned to boxing training; In so doing, he overcame his terrible depression and shed weight, by training for a couple of months, and by uploading a video of just six seconds on his social networks. So, the world began to dream and imagine what it would be like to see “Iron Mike” back in the ring.

Miguel, as I affectionately call him, began to organize an event with specific characteristics; It would be an exhibition with head gear, 16-ounce gloves and three rounds match inspired by the events he saw staged by Julio César Chávez and Jorge Arce; exhibitions to entertain the public, to bring happiness to society and, very importantly, for charitable purposes …

Finally, Tyson fell into the temptation of money and gave this event to a company called Triller, who took over and organized it in its entirety. They went out to look for the rival, which was finally Roy Jones; They added the very popular influencer Jake Paul, who had actually been boxing for three years and faced a basketball legend, plus some official fights between pro boxers. It was held at the Staples Center, without an audience, and was complemented by musical acts, highlighting Snoop Dog, who smoked a huge marijuana cigarette … and that’s how the whole stage smelled like…

Tyson offered a wonderful performance; They both understood that it was about entertaining and at no point tried to hurt each other. The event was an absolute success, it sold to 1.6 million homes on pay-per-view, and that was where the eyes of many were opened.

Today there are the Paul brothers, as well as influencers from various countries trying to make their events; Likewise, promoters and broadcast platforms are looking for ways to enter this new dynamic, but the most important thing to note is that retired boxers are looking to get back in the ring.

What happened last Saturday was reality realization; thank goodness there was no serious injury. Tito Ortiz was struck down in less than a minute, with a spectacular knockout that could ended in a fatal injury, and the great legendary champion Evander Holyfield was embarrassed, in just 90 seconds, by a retired mixed martial arts rival.

I’m not interested in analyzing Holyfield performance and what happened; It is a blessing that everyone has seen the reality. You can’t play boxing. Former boxers must not return to the ring to fight. The exhibitions are acceptable, as they are with important security measures, but fighting without a head gear and competitively cannot happen.

What happened last Saturday was a blessing; thank goodness there was no serious injury. Tito Ortiz was demolished in less than a minute, with a spectacular knockout that could ended in a fatal injury, and the great legendary champion Evander Holyfield was embarrassed, in just 90 seconds, by a retired mixed martial arts rival.

I’m not interested in analyzing Holyfield performance and what happened; It is a blessing that everyone has seen the reality. You can’t play boxing. Former boxers must not return to the ring to fight. The exhibitions are acceptable, as they are with important security measures, but fighting competitively cannot happen.

Many legends had left the ring with painful farewell fights, when time took away the physical virtues… Joe Louis was knocked out by Marciano, Ali by Holmes, Leonard by Camacho, El Púas by the unknown Nacho Madrid,

Chávez by Grover Wiley; all of them closed their chapter in the life of a boxer and moved on.

Today is different. Holyfield had not fought in a decade and at 58 he committed a terrible mistake, risking his life and the honor of the sport that gave him everything. Oscar de la Hoya was going to fight, after 12 years out of the ring, but a signal came from heaven when he contracted COVID-19 and had to cancel it; Riddick Bowe says he wants to fight, and so the sharks in the business are pitching offers to legendary but spent fighters to use them, give them peanuts and themselves collecting millions.

This needs order in some way, the power of money and the few scruples of a few cannot be more important than integrity and security. Holyfield can now be once again the great leader, but he must also seek the help of his teammates, colleagues, friends and family, not to go through this situation ever again!

DID YOU KNOW…?

I was in a very popular show on TV in the United States, Celebrity Family Feud.

It was WBC vs UFC. On my team were Holyfield, Bowe, Shawn Porter and Ryan Garcia. We had a great time and we won 527 to 28 points… The funny thing was that Bowe had to be put on a stool because he couldn’t stand for a long time as he now walks with great difficulty… that’s the boxing legend they’re trying to get into the ring again.

Today’s anecdote

My dad was at home when he was informed that the Mexican idol Rubén Púas Olivares would star in a farewell card at the Arena México. He called him and begged him not to… “Forgive me Don Pepe, I need the money and they will pay me very well; I’m fighting a rookie, don’t worry, I’m El Púas.”

The public packed the venue to say farewell to the great idol, who entered the ring against Ignacio Madrid. Ruben Olivares fell to the canvas seven times in two rounds, until the referee mercifully stopped the fight.
The fans cried and yelled, the young Madrid was never forgiven and he never excelled in boxing.

I appreciate your comments at contact@wbcboxing.com

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By Mauricio Sulaimán / Son of José Sulaimán / President of the WBC

Boxing is going through a sensational time, with a significant number of top-level champions, very good fights

scheduled on the calendar for the following months, and idols in various countries.
There is a high expectation for the fights that could take place between great fighters, and there are several divisions that are putting together tournaments that will result in many fights of the highest level.

There are also several television platforms that are airing boxing and competing to win the ratings with their programming: there is cable tv Showtime, which has aired our sport in its programming since the 80’s; ESPN, in the United States, and ESPN Knockout, for all of Latin America. FOX, nationwide, in the US; DAZN, a digital platform worldwide, Space and many networks from all the countries of the world that broadcast boxing such as Azteca and Televisa in Mexico, Wowow in Japan, Sky, and many more in England and of course Triller seen as the new kid in the block by the industry.

While our sport is enjoying what could very well be a golden era, we are also experiencing various complicated issues that are creating great controversy worldwide, with conflicting opinions among members of the boxing community.

One of them is the return of legendary champions to the ring. It all started a couple of years ago, before the pandemic, when the great Mexican champion, Julio César Chávez, got into the ring to give an exhibition with the popular Jorge Travieso Arce.

They did it to raise funds for the medical care of a boxer who suffered an accident in a sparring session, this being the son of José Luis Castillo. The event was a great success, the arena was filled, the television rating was extremely high and the objective of financially supporting a noble cause was gloriously achieved.

Chávez and Arce did two more exhibitions; One was precisely the last event before COVID-19, creating a full house in Hermosillo, selling out 14 000 seats and the other in the middle of the pandemic, behind closed doors, in Tijuana.

These events were very simple and clear: exhibitions with a social responsibility cause, using head gear, 16-ounce gloves and only three rounds, All three events were great entertainment to the public, with good action but full of fun and positive vibes.

Erik Terrible Morales also got into the ring with Mikey García, in California, also wearing head guard, 16 oz gloves and and to raise funds, and it was an absolute success.

Mike Tyson again shook up the world when with a tremendous display, on November 28, along with Roy Jones. This one was different, with no head guard, 12-ounce gloves, and scheduled to eight two-minute rounds.

The California Boxing Commission imposed an important protocol of mandatory medical examinations and there were also anti-doping tests of the VADA clean boxing program. The WBC participated actively and at the end of the event presented a commemorative belt to both contenders, in recognition of their great show that entertained millions during the darkest moments of the pandemic.

Already in 2021 there are a lot of exhibitions and even fights of many legendary boxers who have been retired for many years. Evander Holyfield, 58, will fight Kevin McBride, 47; both have 11 years of not fighting. Oscar de la Hoya will fight a mixed martial arts rival in July; Julio César Chávez will give an exhibition with Macho Camacho’s son, Juan Manuel Márquez and Miguel Cotto will also give an exhibition, as will Marco Antonio Barrera with Soto Karass.

There is a very fine line between exhibitions and fighting, and great concern for those who are doing it without being in optimal condition, or regardless of the consequences this may have on their health, or are doing it for the wrong reasons.

There is concern about the jurisdictions where these events take place, as that is where the protection locks are put in place in many aspects such as: medical examinations, continuous check-ups, event rules, quality of the referee, medical services.

Celebrity boxing is also catching on. This will be the subject of my next column, as there is a great division of opinion about this current phenomenon.

DID YOU KNOW…?

The great Muhammad Ali travelled to Japan to engage in an exhibition against a local wrestler named Antonio Inoki. The opponent decided never to get off the canvas and crawled on it for 15 long rounds, kicking Ali…the end result was declared a draw. It was a total financial success, but one of the worst sporting events in history.

TODAY’S ANECDOTE

There was a journalist who was characterized by systematically attacking boxers; there was no good side, everything was negative, fraud, dirt … One day this man met with my father and Don José, after a long conversation, suggested that he do an experiment: train boxing and one day get in the ring.

He accepted and started a training program; He really took the challenge seriously, and spent more than four months getting in shape and training in the gym, hitting the bags , doing the rope and shadow boxing.
Later, my dad called him to see how he was doing and he had gained an impressive confidence, so he suggested that it was time to get in the ring and show how boxing was something that anyone could practice.
a close friend of my father , managed to secure a training session for this man, with an amateur boxer much smaller than the journalist. Upon entering the ring, he made fun of the size of his rival and asked that the session be without a head gear, which was not accepted.

The bell rang and the guy failed to land a single punch, but received such an amount of leather that, at the end of the first round, he decided to take off his gloves and get out of the ring, leaving the gym without saying a single word. A negative boxing note from him was never read again.

Many years later he called my dad and said: “Thank you José, it was you who saved me in this life; That experience gave me sensitivity and respect for the work of others, gave me discipline and saved my career as a journalist. I call you today, after receiving the annual award of the sports writers association, and it was all thanks to what I learned in boxing.

I appreciate your comments at contact@wbcboxing.com

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For the list of boxing events we will cover live with and with unofficial scorecard (main event), click the following link > Live Boxing Results & Events<