By Chester Rivers: Reading between the lines you all know what the title is insinuating. For those who still don’t understand let me put it in simpler terms. Boxing is more profitable when an African American holds the heavyweight title.
Race is as taboo of a subject in an open forum as they come but it is also the subconscious force that drives boxing’s revenue. Let’s not forget boxing is the sport that gave us terms such as “the great white hope”.
Ironically boxing is the first professional sport in American that allowed people of color to participate. While Jack Johnson could not use a public restroom of his choice in 1910, he would participate in the one of the largest gates in boxing history. Johnson, the first black man to hold the heavyweight title, defeated Jim Jeffries in front of 30,000 boxing fans. The fight itself was billed as Jeffries being the hope of the entire white race to regain the title.
Ironically, in 1938, America as a nation united behind a man of color. Joe Louis whose moniker was the stereotypical Brown Bomber attempted to avenge an earlier loss to Germany’s Max Schmeling in a match that was deemed one of the most important international fights of all time. When Louis defeated Schmeling it was viewed as an American victory over Hitler’s ideology of Aryan superiority even though Louis could not enjoy the same liberties as those who cheered for his victory.
There’s no argument that promoters benefited from the antagonistic persona of Muhammad Ali. People, mostly white, would come out just to see him lose or shall I say put back in his place.
If you saw a list of some of boxing’s top grossing fights would you be surprised to see Larry Holmes vs. Gerry Cooney close to the top. That fight was also built on the premise of race. Holmes made the comment if Cooney was white he would not receive a 50/50 split with the champ. Cooney. the challenger was also introduced last.
The champion is normally introduced last. And to further add insult to injury, U.S. president Ronald Reagan had a phone line placed in Cooney’s dressing room in case he won. No phone was placed in Holmes dressing room.
Many think that the heavyweight division died in Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.A. the night Lennox Lewis knocked out Mike Tyson. I personally feel that boxing isn’t dead just sleeping and Deontay Wilder is just the man to revive heavyweight boxing.
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