Dana White is aiming to monopolise boxing with his latest venture.
TKO Group Holdings, the American media conglomerate that owns UFC and WWE, recently signed a multi-year partnership to establish a boxing league with the financial-backing of Saudi Arabia.
Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority Turki Alalshikh will lead the promotion alongside UFC president White while WWE president Nick Khan also forms part of the board.
There was considerable speculation about how the league will run and who would compete in it, as most of boxing’s biggest stars are tied down to promotional deals.
But White has provided some clarity during a recent interview with ESPN: “It’s all going to go away. There’s going to be one belt.
“It’ll be like the UFC. The model is the model that we have [in UFC]. … WBC, IBF, WBA, etc., etc.
“They will deal with those traditional promoters that are out there that exist right now. We’re not going to do that.”
Boxing is governed by four major sanctioning bodies (WBC, WBA, WBO and IBF) with each of them recognising their own world champion.
The organisations also have separate rankings and don’t rate fighters who hold belts with the other bodies.
In stark contrast, the UFC has one world champion and one set of rankings.
It is a far more simple system, although the ‘Big Four’ belts are steeped in history, so shutting them out will be a long-term process.
At present, there are 17 or 18 weight classes in boxing, depending on whether you consider the newly-erected bridgerweight division as legitimate.
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X – Turki AlalshikhWhite intends for TKO boxing to have its own separate belts and rankings[/caption]
White intends to strip these down with TKO Boxing.
“We’re going to have the basic weight classes that started everything. We will have one champion,” he added.
“And you know how you’re going to know who the champion is because they’re going to fight their way up through the gauntlet.
“And once you get into the top five, you know who the five baddest dudes in the heavyweight division are.
“And then you’ll find out who the champion is. They will defend their titles and that’s how it’ll work.”
The original boxing weight classes are: flyweight, bantamweight, featherweight, lightweight, welterweight, middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight.
