19 Jun

“Entertain me, damn it.” Hearn Responds to Turki’s ‘Tom and Jerry’ Criticism

Matchroom Boxing head Eddie Hearn has reacted to comments made by Turki Alalshikh, the chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, who said he no longer wants to see “Tom and Jerry”-style boxing — referring to fights where one boxer keeps running and avoiding exchanges.

As a promoter, whose job is to manage a fighter’s career successfully and hope he wins, it would be a bit ridiculous of me to tell a fighter: ‘You need to stop and trade. You need to start brawling up close.’ They’ll say, ‘What? That’s not what I do.’

This isn’t stupidity on Turki’s part, because he’s the one footing the bill — and he’s not managing these fighters’ careers. He’s simply saying: ‘I’m paying for entertainment. So entertain me, damn it. I’m paying you way too much, so you better entertain me and the fans.’ And if they don’t, he’s like, ‘That was a waste of money.’ And he’s very honest about that.

I don’t think I could ever say that to a fighter directly. But what you can say to all fighters is this: Just understand — if you fight like that, nobody will want to watch you. And if nobody wants to watch you, people won’t buy tickets. And if people don’t buy tickets or tune in, you won’t get the opportunities or the paydays you think you deserve,” said Hearn.

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