What do boxing fans think about His Excellency Turki Al Sheikh

[Colin Mackie]

Turki told Ngannou to his face that he wanted to see him stopped. Now I can get behind that. Hopefully Joshua ends this whole crossover spectacle. It appears that's what he's counting on.

[timestamped]

i think the most likely outcome is a noncontroversial unanimous decision by Joshua. He's awfully cautious these days and won't turn it up unless Ngannou appears gassed. Even then he'll turn it up slowly just to keep safe. For his part, Ngannou knows if he can go 10 rounds with the number two heavyweight in the world, he is worth another payday, maybe against Wilder. I expect him to conserve his energy and not throw a hell of a lot. Afterwards he'll say AJ was scared to open up, fight, whatever.

I hope I'm wrong and that Ngannou goes into Ibeabuchi mode from the opening bell, but that's unlikely.

 

[borntoloseNOT]

I think sign as many fights as possible while the gettins good. Then back to watching the undercards for the hungry fighters if this new trend dies. Always look for the hungry fighters when in doubt about this sport, but for now these Saudi events are a long needed release for some pent up boxing frustration

 

[randomg1t]

I think that he is a murderous despot, who is attempting to sanitize his regime's image and gain geopolitical influence by spending obscene amounts of money.

precisely.

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

i think the most likely outcome is a noncontroversial unanimous decision by Joshua. He's awfully cautious these days and won't turn it up unless Ngannou appears gassed. Even then he'll turn it up slowly just to keep safe. For his part, Ngannou knows if he can go 10 rounds with the number two heavyweight in the world, he is worth another payday, maybe against Wilder. I expect him to conserve his energy and not throw a hell of a lot. Afterwards he'll say AJ was scared to open up, fight, whatever.

I hope I'm wrong and that Ngannou goes into Ibeabuchi mode from the opening bell, but that's unlikely.

I think they'll both be highly cautious from the start. Eventually though AJ will begin to take more and more risks. They'll just be calculated. If, or should I say when, AJ hurts him I think he'll look to finish but he'll be very careful in going about it. We'll have to see how they take each others power. Ngannou may be able to take it well early but after 7, 8, 9 rounds? That could change. If he's real fatigued and his mouth is open AJ will see that and capitalize.

It could go the distance but I'm leaning more toward an AJ stoppage. I think he'll want to make a statement against Ngannou after Fury shit the bed.

 

[Fisticuffa]

So far he has been good & if you listen to his recent interview



He comes off as a genuine boxing fan

Sportswashing is nothing new, the only difference is that Saudi's have very deep pockets & can keep this going for a while

Saudi's are also paying exciting fighters who produce KO's while Americans pay Shakira Twitterson & Huggy Haney. Guys like Beterbiev, Opetaia, Subriel Matias etc deserve way more than Shakira & Huggy but don't get much because they aren't American & aren't English fluent (well Opetaia is but he is in the unglamorous CW division & is from Australia). Saudi's care less about English & appealing to Americans which means that deserving guys like Beterbiev will finally be paid what they might be worth if we go by talent

What's worse is the American boxing media trying to brainwash you that this sort of disgusting rule breaking boxing is something great with hyperbole like "a boxing clinic", "sweet science of hit & not get hit" & that if you can't appreciate the Shakira's & Huggy's of this world then there is something wrong with you as a fan



Look at how many clinches there are, but no warnings or point deductions

If I wanted to watch a masterclass in boxing technique of the highest quality I will go watch McCallum vs Toney trilogy, particularly the first fight which combined quality technique with intense back & forth action not these 2 frauds

Inoue will also be getting a career high payday from Saudi's in 2024 if he beats Nery & they host the MJ fight. What's not to like

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

So far he has been good & if you listen to his recent interview



He comes off as a genuine boxing fan

Sportswashing is nothing new, the only difference is that Saudi's have very deep pockets & can keep this going for a while

Saudi's are also paying exciting fighters who produce KO's while Americans pay Shakira Twitterson & Huggy Haney. Guys like Beterbiev, Opetaia, Subriel Matias etc deserve way more than Shakira & Huggy but don't get much because they aren't American & aren't English fluent (well Opetaia is but he is in the unglamorous CW division & is from Australia). Saudi's care less about English & appealing to Americans which means that deserving guys like Beterbiev will finally be paid what they might be worth if we go by talent

What's worse is the American boxing media trying to brainwash you that this sort of disgusting rule breaking boxing is something great with hyperbole like "a boxing clinic", "sweet science of hit & not get hit" & that if you can't appreciate the Shakira's & Huggy's of this world then there is something wrong with you as a fan



Look at how many clinches there are, but no warnings or point deductions

Inoue will also be getting a career high payday from Saudi's in 2024 if he beats Nery & they host the MJ fight. What's not to like

I think Haney deserves big paydays. He's already accomplished a lot despite being so young. We know that excessive clinching is his specialty but in his last couple fights, against Loma & Prograis, he's not abused it like he did previously.

I am glad that Beterbiev is finally going to be paid a very handsome sum. It'll be a career high payday for the Bivol fight. Probably many, many times bigger than his previous largest purse. I figure Bivol will make about the same.

 

[Colin Mackie]

I think they'll both be highly cautious from the start. Eventually though AJ will begin to take more and more risks. They'll just be calculated. If, or should I say when, AJ hurts him I think he'll look to finish but he'll be very careful in going about it. We'll have to see how they take each others power. Ngannou may be able to take it well early but after 7, 8, 9 rounds? That could change. If he's real fatigued and his mouth is open AJ will see that and capitalize.

It could go the distance but I'm leaning more toward an AJ stoppage. I think he'll want to make a statement against Ngannou after Fury shit the bed.

A lot will depend on how seriously Ngannou wants the KO. He's talked about wanting to stop Joshua lately, and, if he's serious, I think he will have to look at this as a much shorter fight and jump on Joshua early., much the way Hagler went after Hearns, or Ibeabuchi jumped on Chris Byrd. That's risky seeing as AJ isn't a fat SMW and can punch hard himself, but if he wants a KO I think that's what he has to do. If he does something like that this will be a very fun fight.

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

A lot will depend on how seriously Ngannou wants the KO. He's talked about wanting to stop Joshua lately, and, if he's serious, I think he will have to look at this as a much shorter fight and jump on Joshua early., much the way Hagler went after Hearns, or Ibeabuchi jumped on Chris Byrd. That's risky seeing as AJ isn't a fat SMW and can punch hard himself, but if he wants a KO I think that's what he has to do. If he does something like that this will be a very fun fight.

I'm rooting for AJ but I do think that Ngannou has more than enough power to put him out. I mean a proper, clean KO and not a TKO stoppage. Conversely I think AJ has enough to do the same against Ngannou. At the very least I believe he has the ability to stop him. Ngannou appears to have a great chin on him so it likely won't happen with one big shot but AJ throws some wicked combos.

Do I see Ngannou pursuing the knockout? Yes. He's not some point fighter that prefers to decision guys he's precisely the opposite. So, it should be interesting for as long as it lasts.

 

[Dr Fong]

All of our governments have done us a favor in the last few months to kick anyone remaining standing sanctimoniously on the moral high ground right down into the mud with the Saudi regime.

You can recognize how awful the Saudi sports washing routine is. But now you can be comforted knowing that the Saudis are actually the ones trying (not hard enough) to stop the current most egregious example of mass atrocities and human rights abuses while our governments vehemently support them.

You can now enjoy the boxing in nihilistic peace.

 

[burningspear]

he likes holmes and duran and he has hearn and warren clapping like andre the seal, gets my vote(no pun)

 

[BangBang]

Never did like turkey. Tasteless and much better value elsewhere.

 

[GolovKing]

Turki told Ngannou to his face that he wanted to see him stopped. Now I can get behind that. Hopefully Joshua ends this whole crossover spectacle. It appears that's what he's counting on.

[timestamped]

Why would you get behind that? That's very disrespectful for someone involved in promoting an event to talk to an actual fighter like that. Also gives you a hint as to how rigged you can expect many of these events to be. Ngannou probably can't get a w against big names in boxing unless he knocks them out or dominates them

 

[GolovKing]

I think that he is a murderous despot, who is attempting to sanitize his regime's image and gain geopolitical influence by spending obscene amounts of money.

He isn't like the king of Saudi Arabia or anything. He's more like some high ranking advisor or official that oversees a lot of business deals and things like that

 

[GolovKing]

He's putting on some great events so obviously I am a fan of that but as a person something about him just seems off to me. He comes across as a conniving person that's full of himself and used to people kissing his feet. I though it was very disrespectful and unprofessional for him to straight up tell ngannou that he wants to see him get knocked out. He doesn't seem to be that smart of a guy otherwise he should know that's a bad look but Saudi Arabia isn't exactly a meritocracy so what would you expect

 

[Thepaintbucket]

What is going to happen the moment his excellency decides to de-invest in the sport? I guess short term it's great and all because he's making fights happen but long-term the guy might be doing some harm

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

Why would you get behind that? That's very disrespectful for someone involved in promoting an event to talk to an actual fighter like that. Also gives you a hint as to how rigged you can expect many of these events to be. Ngannou probably can't get a w against big names in boxing unless he knocks them out or dominates them

As I wrote in my post I'm tired of the whole boxing vs MMA spectacle. I agree it was a disrespectful thing to say but Turki is the one writing his check. You think this means it'll be rigged? I was actually surprised that the cards were as close as they were for Fury vs Ngannou. If anything Ngannou got more credit than he deserved. Not less.

 

[Zarathustra611]

I think that he is a murderous despot, who is attempting to sanitize his regime's image and gain geopolitical influence by spending obscene amounts of money.

This...

But also he seems to be the only guy able to get these knuckleheads in the ring together, so thanks Turkster!

The difficulty on the horizon is that the biggest fights will rarely want to happen now if they can't get that Saudi money and max the prize.

 

[Zarathustra611]

What is going to happen the moment his excellency decides to de-invest in the sport? I guess short term it's great and all because he's making fights happen but long-term the guy might be doing some harm

It will be interesting. The purses are a bit higher- but they are artificially inflated by a promoter who doesn't need to make profit. The high purses catch attention, bring publicity and to some extent make the sport a more attractive option for potential athletes.

I don't think much changes if they pull out. Vegas goes back to being the big show. Which USA will like but for 90% of the world makes no difference, we are still going to some overseas moneypot destination full of ruthless people with their own agenda. No difference for us.

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

He isn't like the king of Saudi Arabia or anything. He's more like some high ranking advisor or official that oversees a lot of business deals and things like that

He isn't but he is a high ranking government official that represents both the king and the crown prince. Turki is Ministry of Sport (MoS) chairman and also the chairman of Saudi's General Entertainment Authority (GEA). He advises the royal court.

 

[PBAC]

He's putting on some great events so obviously I am a fan of that but as a person something about him just seems off to me. He comes across as a conniving person that's full of himself and used to people kissing his feet. I though it was very disrespectful and unprofessional for him to straight up tell ngannou that he wants to see him get knocked out. He doesn't seem to be that smart of a guy otherwise he should know that's a bad look but Saudi Arabia isn't exactly a meritocracy so what would you expect

promoters tend to delay fights to let prospects stew and cash in. the cycle in boxing is usually to draw attention to prospects gradually than display them to wider audiences on the undercard of a super fight. It's kind of happening right now but I am concerned the building time is being diluted. I don't dislike what they're doing because it makes the sport I watch at least maintain a better pace.

As I wrote in my post I'm tired of the whole boxing vs MMA spectacle. I agree it was a disrespectful thing to say but Turki is the one writing his check. You think this means it'll be rigged? I was actually surprised that the cards were as close as they were for Fury vs Ngannou. If anything Ngannou got more credit than he deserved. Not less.

Credit for the KD and credit for the fact that Fury simply looked crap. He had no response. I think most of us here clearly saw Fury at least outpacing him but 1 in 3 people will form an opinion around the most easily translated, excitable and understandable material presented to them. This applies to boxing judges too.