Oscar De La Hoya is concerned about the future of boxing.
“The Golden Boy,” a former boxing champion-turned-promoter, doesn’t like what he’s seeing in terms of the proposed changes to the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act, a federal law designed to protect the rights and welfare of boxers. The UFC’s parent company, TKO, has been lobbying to introduce the Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act, which would make way for TKO to introduce its own championship belts into the sport, along with the current titles of the main sanctioning bodies in change of overseeing boxing (WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO).
De La Hoya thinks this is a bad idea, and warns the combat sports world of the potential harms it could bring to boxing.
“It’s in place for a reason,” De La Hoya told Fight Hype. “I’m telling you right now, if they change the Muhammad Ali act, every manager is going to have problems. They’re going to be in trouble because you’re not going to be able to negotiate, or negotiate purses or this and that. You fight for what they pay you, and that’s not a way to do it. That’s not the way to do it. It’s a free negotiation. You have managers for a reason. The fighters should be making the boats of the money. We put our lives on the line. We go up in the ring. Fighters die. For what? To get 10 percent? That’s bullsh*t.”
The Muhammad Ali Revival Act claims to offer more opportunities for boxers, as it will serve as an “alternative” to the current boxing system. However, the bill has been criticized by many, claiming it will give too much power to the promoters, and the belts would be owned by the promotion rather than be managed by an independent body that implements mandatory title defenses with rightful contenders, along with other rules in order to balance out the power between the fighters and promoters.
