Once upon a time, boxing was THE sport of men.
The greatest of fights would draw the attention of
people across the globe in monstrous numbers, both in
person and on television. Then, as evolution kicked in,
the interest in boxing waned. There’s no exact date to
quantify its loss of appeal. Maybe it coincided with Mike
Tyson’s downward spiral. What is certain though, is that
boxing fell out of the spotlight for a really long time, and
is yet to make a complete turnaround.
This weekend, Floyd Mayweather, Jr will take on
Manny Pacquiao. The epic bout that all fans of the sport
are looking forward to has been billed as Battle for
Greatness or The Fight of the Century.
Speaking on his views on what the fight means
to the fan community of boxing in Goa, Clyde Lobo,
Secretary, Goa Boxing Association says, “This is huge
for the Goan boxing community. This is the coming
together of two heavyweights that everyone has
been looking forward to for years now. I am most
keen on seeing how this plays out.”
While Mayweather has flair, Pacquiao’s
performances speak for themselves. Between the
two, they are capable of rejuvenating the interest
in the sport. As such, this fight is not only a huge
moment for the sport of boxing, but for a pop culture
that brands boxing as ‘cool’.
However, in the midst of it all, what is dismaying for
the Indian fans is the failure of any sports broadcasters
to telecast the fight live. Boxing fan Sean Faia feels, “I’ve
been following Lennox Lewis and now, of course,
Floyd Mayweather in the boxing scene for a while.
When it was announced that Mayweather would
be taking on Pacquiao I was as excited as a
kid in a candy store. Every fan and boxing
enthusiast says it’s a bit late for this fight
to take place, but better late than never. I
would pick Mayweather to win this fight
hands down, but I’m disappointed that
no broadcaster has picked up the rights to
telecast in India. I will still be awake early
morning on May 3 to catch the fight online.”
Just like Sean, The Fight of the Century will touch
global audiences in all areas, and more importantly, of
all ages. A 2013 poll indicated that 62% of boxing fans
were between ages 30 and 84, while only 26% were
between ages 18 and 29. If everything goes well, many
new fans and converts may look forward to future
bouts too. All in all, this could well be the beginning of
a fan movement.
