2024 saw some interesting fights from an outsider perspective and one big fight that spoke to what people perceive boxing to be.
The big fight that I’m talking about is Logan Paul fighting Mike Tyson. The event was widely publicized and received much more buzz than I thought would happen. Foreshadowing the event, the original date in July was continued to November due to the fact that Tyson had undisclosed health issues.
The event would be the first combat sports event on Netflix and would be the most-watched streaming event on the company. But, the event did have its issues. Subscribers complained about the streaming and (as always) a lawsuit was filed due to the streaming issues.
Aside from Tyson-Paul, the Heavyweight title was defended twice by Oleksandr Usyk against Tyson Fury. The first fight in May was a split decision and the second fight was a unanimous decision in Usyk’s favor. In all honesty, Fury does not look like he’s any type of shape to fight but he still has boxing skill and punching power. What comes next for the heavyweight decision may not appeal to the casual boxing fan. Unless fans are into seeing Usyk face Chinese Heavyweight Zhilei Zhang, we could have a disappointing 2025 in the heavyweight division.
This past March, we saw Francis Ngannou in a boxing match as he took on Anthony Joshua. The fight looked good on paper but Ngannou was thoroughly outclassed by a true boxer in Joshua. The former UFC heavyweight champion was knocked down in round 1 and then again in the second. The referee stepped in to stop the fight in round 2.
In April, we saw one of the bigger fights of the year as Danny Garcia took on Devin Haney. Garcia’s erratic behavior throughout fight week made people wonder if he was mentally capable to take the fight. Garcia showed up at weigh-ins 3 pounds over the contracted limit and chugged what appeared to be a beer on the weight scale. Despite the antics, Garcia looked solid in the ring and eventually earned a stoppage over Haney.
We found out that Garcia tested positive for a banned substance and lost over $1 million and suspended a year. As a result, Devin Haney sued Garcia for among other things, battery. If they had only read up on the Mark Hunt case. Nevertheless, Garcia returned with a countersuit against Haney ensuring this litigation will go through 2025.
In June, we saw Jorge Masvidal fight Nathan Diaz. The less said about this the better.
Terrence Crawford fought in August in Los Angeles as part of a Saudi-backed card. He defeated Israil Madrimov for the WBA and vacant WBO interim light middleweight titles. Arguably, the best fighter in boxing is slated to fight Sebastian Fundora in a mandatory defense of the WBO junior middleweight title. But, I presume Crawford is looking toward a big payday and a fight with Canelo.
This past August, an Orange County Superior Court overturned a jury finding that Manny Pacquiao was liable for breach of contract. Pacquiao’s attorneys successfully argued that the contract Pacquiao signed with Paradigm Sports Management was void because no one at the agency had a valid boxing manager’s license in the state of California at the time of the signing with Pacquiao.
Canelo Alvarez flexed his star power yet again. Despite UFC 306 at The Sphere crosstown, Alvarez fought at T-Mobile Arena and drew a reported $17 million gate and 650 buys on PPV. Alvarez defeated Edgar Berlanga. Notably, UFC 306’s big event drew a $22 million gate. Overall, a big night for Las Vegas.
The first boxing video game came out in the fall of October 2024. Undisputed features Canelo Alvarez on the cover and came out to real good reviews and buys.
Is boxing consolidating? With Saudi Arabia flexing its power in the sport, could it be working with more promotions to put on fights in the middle east? Las Vegas and New York no longer have the stranglehold on the biggest fights anymore. Riyadh Season announced partnerships with Golden Boy and Top Rank. Rumors of a boxing league were bandied about in July but simmered down in the fall. We shall see if Riyadh Season will be working more in the US in 2025.
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