THE RIGHT DECISION
I’M writing in to congratulate Boxing News on its decision to recognise the Transnational Boxing Rankings ahead of any sanctioning body rankings. This is a brave decision, but the right one. By focusing on one non-biased set of rankings, and by ignoring the many variations of ‘world’ titles awarded by the sanctioning bodies, it’ll make it easier for fans to follow the sport. Any match in another sport featuring an authentic world No. 4 against an authentic world No. 9 (to use the example of the upcoming Kid Galahadjazza Dickens fight) would, and should, attract attention, prestige and the right remuneration for the athletes involved. I sincerely hope that your actions are followed by other outlets and that they lead to a wider range of reforms in the governance of boxing. eg. A reduction in the number of sanctioning bodies, as well as a streamlining of weight classes. Rob Kearns
UNMUDDYING THE WATERS
FINALLY, the boxing business seems to be slowly dragging itself out of its current confusing and difficult situation, with
Boxing News making a decision that could impact the sport positively moving forward. Of course, I’m referring to the sensible, wise, even brave decision from
BN to stop recognising the alphabet belts as world titles. It’s been a long time coming and the team behind the move should be commended. Incorporating the Transnational Boxing Rankings is another positive step in unmuddying the stagnant waters boxing often finds itself in. Mark Massow (Manager/trainer/ Matchmaker)
THE SIMPLE TRUTH
THE recent announcement that Boxing News will no longer be recognising sanctioning body belts as world titles brought to mind a question that my eight-year-old son once asked me:
“Why are there four ‘world’ champions when there’s only one world?” David Page
PROPS TO GOLDEN BOY
GOLDEN BOY PROMOTIONS can quite often receive a lot of unwarranted criticism. Most of the time, I think that the criticism has more to do with their sometimes-controversial figurehead, “The Golden Boy” himself, Oscar De La Hoya. For whatever reason, De La Hoya has become somewhat of a marmite character, but love him or hate him, his team are leading the way in terms of matchmaking. The recent show that was headlined by Gilberto Ramirez vs Sullivan Barrera featured a quality undercard, and this wasn’t a one-off. Personally, I think that the Golden Boy cards are the highlight of the DAZN schedule. Matchmaker Roberto Diaz and his team are putting together some great fights. James Ingleby