Boxing is in very good shape. Ariel Helwani is sick of hearing that it isn’t. The combat sports reporter was a guest on The Pat McAfee Show Thursday and called his colleagues that question the sport’s health lazy.
“Nothing pisses me off more, Patrick, honestly, nothing grinds my gears more than when I hear these lazy media guys out there with their hot takes that love to say ‘Boxing is dead, boxing isn’t what it once was,’” he said.
Ariel Helwani characterized boxing as “kicking ass” right now. In fact, he said two boxers that people say are proof that boxing is in trouble are responsible for its resurgence.
“People like to say the Paul brothers are an indication as to why boxing is dead. My argument is the Paul brothers is why boxing is alive and well and, dare I say, thriving.”
Jake and Logan Paul rose to fame on social media. They were known for their videos on YouTube long before anyone knew they had athletic aspirations.
Ariel Helwani says that not only are the Paul brothers making money for themselves, they have other boxers believing in them and signing with their company. They are able to pay more than other promotions including the UFC.
Paul brothers aside, Ariel Helwani says that there is plenty of evidence that boxing is doing just fine. He pointed to all of the media companies that have secured boxing rights.
“You’ve got your old friends at DAZN doing there thing. You’ve got ESPN involved with Top Rank. You’ve got Fury/Wilder on October 9th. You’ve got Anthony Joshua. Did you see that fight on Saturday in front of 70,000 fans? It was absurd. Boxing’s on fire!”
