The BBC decided boxing match deserves seats at the table on Saturday night, teaming up with Boxxer to play the fight on the BBC iPlayer and airing on good old free TV. That’s right – you don’t need to pay £20 PPV to watch prospect batsmen, some of whom are overly over the Latvians. at present.
It’s not just the main battle either. They will play some bottom card matches in the BBC Sport website and apps, behind-the-scenes points and some fill functions. It sounds good, but most of us just want to have a decent fight without a three-hour preface and half-time montage that looks like it was made for the Six Kingdoms.
The BBC says boxing is back – but will anyone care?
Alex Kay-Jelski from BBC Sport is already patting himself on the back, talking about bringing boxing to “young audiences” and giving them the “next generation” of warriors. The “Next Generation” is great, but if the matchmaking trash is done, no one will stick with it in the third round. The sport needs blood, drama and real competition – not only the shiny scenes and battle front panels.
Shalom promises “the biggest audience” – Yes, we’ve heard of it before
Boxxer Boss Ben Shalom calls it “historic” and says they will bring the most “entertainable” fighter jets to the largest audience. Translation: They will try to make stars without taking risks too early. Hopefully this means a real 50/50 fight instead of another unbeaten kid with a taxi driver who lost six consecutive times.
For fans, this could be a win…if they aren’t full of safe pairing and fill records. The BBC owns the platform, and BoxXer’s contender (Boxxer) gets the fighter – now let’s see if they have a fight worth watching. Or another gluttony on Saturday night that was overproduced?
Last updated on August 8, 20125
