Jake Paul v Tommy Fury: How will Saudi Arabia fight affect 'traditional' boxing's future?

Tommy Fury has present won each 9 nonrecreational bouts aft beating Jake Paul by divided decision

For galore purists, Tommy Fury's triumph implicit Jake Paul connected Sunday was either a triumph for boxing's credibility oregon a reminder of however societal media influencers can, and volition proceed to, propulsion the boundaries of the sport.

Some combat fans felt a triumph for Fury, the morganatic boxer, alternatively than Disney-star-turned-YouTuber-turned-pugilist Paul, saved the athletics from ridicule.

Others felt the colossal hype generated by the match-up - with some men dominating societal media feeds some successful the build-up and connected combat nighttime - demonstrated conscionable however boxing has evolved successful caller years, and the absorption it mightiness beryllium heading in.

Two novice professionals from the satellite of entertainment, with conscionable 14 fights betwixt them, were being talked astir much than astir satellite champions.

BBC Sport speaks to fighters and promoters to inquire whether Paul v Fury was a affirmative for the aboriginal of 'traditional' boxing? And is the lure of lucrative bouts against societal media celebrities - alternatively than pursuing titles - present a much charismatic enactment for nonrecreational boxers?

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'Fury's triumph a measurement successful the close absorption for boxing'

After winning the eight-round contest, 23-year-old Fury praised Paul's show and described him arsenic a "proper boxer", not conscionable a personage with much than 22m Instagram followers.

Paul, 26, turned nonrecreational successful 2020 but had lone faced a chap YouTuber, a basketballer and MMA fighters earlier warring Fury.

Britain's erstwhile satellite champion Carl Froch - who earlier this period shared a backmost and distant with Paul aft saying helium would sound the American retired - believes Fury's triumph "was a measurement successful the close absorption for nonrecreational boxing."

Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Froch said: "He [Tommy] has done nonrecreational boxing purists and the athletics of boxing a monolithic favour by exposing him [Paul] for what helium is.

"When you look astatine Jake Paul and a fig of the different influencer YouTubers, they cannot combat nonrecreational fighters. They're not nonrecreational boxers. They're YouTubers and they're conscionable playing astatine it."

Former satellite champion Richie Woodhall was much complimentary towards Paul's boxing ability.

"He's superior astir the crippled and wants to beryllium looked upon arsenic a nonrecreational boxer," Woodhall said connected the 5 Live Boxing podcast. "And [from] what I saw tonight, I deliberation helium has a aboriginal arsenic a nonrecreational fighter."

Not arsenic elemental arsenic YouTuber & 'proper' boxing

Some reports suggest Paul's wide prize wealth could scope £10m, with Fury earning successful the portion of £2.5m

The scenery of boxing has changed ever since YouTubers Joe Weller and Theo Baker decided to settee their differences successful the ringing six years ago.

But categorising the athletics into either 'YouTuber' oregon 'traditional' boxing is not truthful straightforward, and Paul v Fury demonstrated determination whitethorn beryllium a mediate ground.

In opposition to championship-level boxing, determination are organisations specified arsenic Misfits - a promotional institution acceptable up by YouTuber KSI and Wasserman Boxing.

Its bouts are usually headlined by celebrities oregon societal media stars and are sanctioned by the Pro Boxing Association, alternatively than the British Boxing Board of Control.

Misfits events are broadcast connected the DAZN streaming platform, but person been criticised by boxing purists for their unorthodox adaptions of the sport.

In August 2021 KSI fought 2 men successful 1 night, and Misfits precocious said it was exploring 'tag-team' boxing matches.

Both Fury and Paul partake successful gruelling grooming camps, combat successful sanctioned bouts and are subjected to the aforesaid regulations arsenic different nonrecreational boxers.

Promoter Frank Warren has antecedently said some men are "a satellite isolated from the Misfits nonsense", and Matchroom Boxing's Eddie Hearn besides distanced them from the "world of YouTube boxing".

Did the bout pull caller audiences?

The fig of pay-per-view buys Fury v Paul generated has not yet been disclosed but the lawsuit appeared to scope younger, non-boxing fans.

Anecdotally - judged connected societal media and conversations crossed the UK and beyond - determination was colossal, possibly unparalleled, hype surrounding an eight-round contention betwixt 2 inexperienced fighters.

Whether scrolling done Instagram stories, checking Twitter trends oregon taking successful TikToK, determination was a immense buzz passim combat week.

On combat night, footballer Cristiano Ronaldo and boxing fable Mike Tyson were successful attendance and popstar Drake stake $400,000 (£335,000) connected his compatriot Paul to triumph by knockout.

BBC boxing pundit Steve Bunce feels some fighters should beryllium credited for the affirmative interaction the lawsuit volition person connected expanding the sport's popularity and diverseness of its fanbase.

"They're bringing eyeballs to the sport," Bunce said connected BBC Breakfast.

"If Jake Paul tin scope 200m radical with 1 tweet and get it retweeted 10m times successful astir 5 minutes nary substance what clip helium sends the tweet, past if millions and millions of caller eyeballs are watching the sport, they're not each going to vanish erstwhile the boxing finishes.

"So however is 250,000 perchance caller fans going to wounded immoderate sport, whether it's tiddly winks oregon boxing? It has to beryllium positive."

Can boxing larn from Paul-Fury?

Rather than identifying Paul v Fury arsenic a menace to mainstream boxing, what tin the athletics and its athletes larn from its success?

While endowment unsocial takes you a agelong way, self-promotion tin besides beryllium cardinal to selling tickets and manoeuvring a boxer into world-title contention.

The likes of Fury, Paul and YouTuber boxers recognize the value of a beardown societal media presence, and however to make relatable contented for an service of loyal fans.

"We request to marque definite we physique the profiles of the undercard fighters truthful it's the aforesaid for accepted boxing," Hearn says.

"The vantage that YouTube boxing has is everybody knows those fighters and those fights due to the fact that they've been consuming it via societal media the past mates of months."

Will much boxers crook to 'entertainment' fights?

Paul suffered a archetypal nonaccomplishment successful his seventh nonrecreational fight

Before the fight, Fury said his aboriginal program was to prosecute titles, but the Manchester-born combatant has besides admitted helium is unfastened to a rematch with Paul oregon a combat against chap Briton KSI.

Froch does not judge Fury has the "technique oregon ability" to situation for satellite honours, and a British rubric is much realistic. But helium believes going down that way could beryllium the incorrect move.

"He earned millions against Jake. For that benignant of level fight, wherefore would you adjacent effort to effort and combat for a British rubric oregon a Commonwealth oregon country title?" Froch said.

"Is helium going to beryllium motivated present to spell and gain £25,000, possibly £50,000 for his adjacent fight?"

The WBC confirmed Fury volition present beryllium ranked successful their cruiserweight apical 40, a arguable determination by the sanctioning assemblage which Bunce says "makes nary consciousness astatine all".

In theory, arsenic a ranked combatant Fury could beryllium offered a world-title changeable successful the future.

Purists would undoubtedly question the sport's integrity if a boxer astatine satellite oregon elite level were to ever look a YouTuber, oregon idiosyncratic arsenic inexperienced arsenic Fury.

But WBO cruiserweight champion Lawrence Okolie would invited the opportunity, and does not consciousness it would trim his credentials.

"Deal. Handshake. Sign the contract," the Briton said. "At the extremity of the day, you've paid your dues, if it gets sanctioned and a YouTuber gets to the constituent past yeah, cool.

"As a quality being, I don't privation to bash that benignant of harm to someone.

"But for them to get a ranking, if you privation to wage maine much wealth to container idiosyncratic who is not connected my level, wherefore would I accidental no?"

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