Boxing Was Grade C In 2024; Hurt By Ducking & Lackluster Cards

2024 C Grade Influenced By Tank, Usyk, Canelo, Fundora & Lopez

With the end of 2024 approaching, boxing fans and pundits will discuss what letter grade to give the sport. What fights fans were asking for never materialized, and without a mega-fight, the best grade this author can give is a “C”. Now this isn’t to say Turki Alalshikh, Eddie Hearn, Frank Warren, Bob Arum, Oscar De La Hoya, and Premier Boxing Champions didn’t try to make big fights. But, they all still fell short in the end.

THE GOOD

One of the bright spots in the sport was Pro Box TV. They put on some outstanding cards with fighters who would never get a chance on bigger platforms. Jake Paul’s MVP Promotions, OTX boxing, and Eye of the Tiger Management provided noteworthy entertainment featuring some unknown prospects that broke into the rankings.

Two-divisional champion Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez, undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev, and unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk were perhaps the brighter spots in the sport. Then came the rise of a new star in undisputed flyweight champion Gabriela “Sweet Poison” Fundora.

THE BAD

WBO junior welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez got more attention for his racial rants than his actual fights. In addition, he doesn’t seem to care about fighting any of the other champions in the division. Then you had junior welterweight Ryan Garcia’s behavior leading up to a fight with then-WBC champion Devin Haney. To make matters worse, after scoring an upset victory, Garcia tested positive for a banned substance.

Depending on which coast you lived on, getting up early to catch some of the fights in Saudi Arabia was a slight inconvenience. In addition, they had incredibly long cards with even longer intermissions. Unlike 2023, which saw women carry the sport, most of the big names only fought once in 2024.

THE UGLY

First, regardless of his reason behind it, Haney’s lawsuit against Garcia was a big black eye for the sport. With that out of the way, then there was the rampant ducking this year. Rumors of big-fight talks surfaced only for fans to be disappointed when nothing materialized. Exhibition fights thrived due to the lack of big fights in the sport.

Among the stories in the “duck chronicles” were Hamzah Sheeraz swerving unified middleweight champion Janibek Alimkhanuly, Adam Azim dodging Dalton Smith, and WBA lightweight champion Gervonta Davis’s dismissive attitude toward rival champion Shakur Stevenson. Two top heavyweight contenders, Agit Kabayel and Zhilei Zhang, avoided Martin Bakole.

Lastly, unified super middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez refused to fight two-time champion David “Monster” Benavidez. This was the one fight fans and pundits were screaming to see. The fact this fight didn’t get made alone is one of the main reasons for this author’s low grade. The sport went so downhill this year that several fans would forget an event was taking place on fight night.

The sport gets an A for effort with the way it started the year, but an F for delivery. The way things dropped off in the middle and toward the end of the year averages out to an overall C.

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