Vol. 5 No. 1, January 2008
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Ring Masters
Mixed martial arts claims younger fans, but don’t count out boxing
This month Atlantic City unfurls a diverse contact-sports menu.
Boxing, the city’s lifelong staple, surfaces January 5 at Bally’s when Paulie Malignaggi, a swaggering, two-fisted New York super-lightweight, defends his IBF title against Herman Ngoudjo. On January 25, Trump Taj Majal presents a mixed martial arts showcase.
The high-profile marriage between boxing and MMA is an uneasy one. Each represents a different era, but both represent money. Atlantic City now takes its cue from Las Vegas and presents both.
Networks are enhancing the trend. Showtime televises both January events here, and battle-hardened networks that championed boxing in the past now target a younger demographic.
“To me, they remain two different sports with different audiences,” says Gordon Hall, vice president of production and executive producer of Shobox. “Boxing has had a long history with loyal fans. MMA is exactly what it says: jiu-jitsu, karate, multiple sports formed into one. It takes place in a cage and many of the fights can end quickly. You walk into an MMA event and you will see a minimum of 10 fights. Rarely will you see that many on a boxing card.” Mixed martial arts snares young fans. They grow up on the blistering pace of technology with its now-now-now urgency. “I think it’s part of everything you see,” Hall says of MMA’s slam-bang appeal. “Everybody wants instant gratification. Look at the news. If you don’t see what you want on one channel, you've got 300 to choose from... Our concentration levels, our attention spans, have been shortened.”
Boxing generally draws older fans who like 12-round bouts full of drama, turning points and tests of stamina.
Many have forecast the decline of boxing with the rise of mixed martial arts. Others view MMA as a fad. Neither is correct. Showtime, for instance, has a satellite and a premier circuit for both sports. Mixed martial arts falls under ShoXC and Elite XC (standing for extreme combat). Young MMA fighters can work their way up the exposure ladder, just as Shobox: The New Generation provides fighters for its Championship Boxing Series.
One such talent is Malignaggi, who appeared on Shobox before headlining at Bally’s.
“He’s an exciting fighter, even though he has limited power,” Hall says. “He can throw 100 punches a round. He’s cocky, he’s a talker and a bit of an intimidator. Paulie has overcome a lot, particularly with hand injuries, to win a world title. That shows a lot of dedication and perseverance.”
Atlantic City loves bright, polite pugilists. Malignaggi fits, and has become as popular as Arturo Gatti, Micky Ward, Ray Mancini and Bobby Czyz. A significant part of his success is honesty. Malignaggi laughs about failing to knock out opponents, a quality that humanizes him.
Borgata Squeezing Them In
Atlantic City often competes against other jurisdictions to land sporting events. Borgata has a different type of opponent—its own calendar.
“We could bring even more here, but the biggest obstacle is clearing the room,” Borgata President and CEO Larry Mullin says. “There are 180 events in here every year. If the right fight is proposed to us and we can find the room, we’re happy to do it. We’ve found the fighters who have brought fans in.” Borgata, Atlantic City’s 800-pound gaming gorilla, has a unique association with boxing. It has the showroom and financial wherewithal to stage boxing matches.
Borgata hosted HBO’s Boxing After Dark series in mid-November and became the first Marina property to bankroll a midtown major sports event last year, when Bernard Hopkins fought Antonio Tarver.
Borgata helped pioneer the promotional career of Bernard Hopkins. It purchased events to showcase Hopkins and Golden Boy President Oscar De La Hoya, who helped develop the Latin market here. Hopkins and De La Hoya have become major promotional forces. Hopkins maintains a unique multi-fight contract with Borgata. Unlike many agreements of this type, it has no specific timetable.
Dukes of Hazzard
" The state did me a favor. I feel emancipated,” says former state Athletic Control Board Commissioner Larry Hazzard, who was ousted in ugly fashion last November.
“You’ll see me still around the world of boxing—I just don’t work for the state of New Jersey anymore,” says Hazzard. “Ironically, I’ve received an outpouring of support from people whom I could never agree with on anything in the sport of boxing. Because of the way they handled this, I came out as the winner.”
Several months ago, after 22 years, Hazzard was unceremoniously fired. He was the longest-running commissioner in the nation and seemed bulletproof in the political arena. Although boxing commissioners serve at the pleasure of the governor, effective commissioners are usually left alone. Hazzard believes his troubles began when he documented cases of an HIV-infected fighter who was not suspended, and a mixed martial arts professional facing an amateur. He felt forced to violate the number one rule of government organizations: see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. Political infighting caused his sudden dismissal.
“They told me to stop documenting,” Hazzard says. “They told me to be quiet, and I refused to be quiet.”
Despite the rancorous scene, Hazzard left a strong imprint on New Jersey boxing. He instituted enhancements like the mouthpiece break, increased medical testing and instant replay. The mouthpiece rule enables referees to pause the action if a fighter’s mouthpiece comes out; a fighter without a mouthpiece can suffer substantial injuries, especially a broken jaw. Increased medical testing includes mandatory CT scans. Instant replay enables a fighter’s camp to protest a substantial call or non-call, like a head butt, knockdown or disputes about whether a fighter beat the count. New Jersey was the first commission in the country to have instant replay.
Hazzard has devoted more than 50 years of his life to boxing. Before becoming an administrator, he was a top-flight referee.
