Tim Bradley Says Promoters Depend on Turki Alalshikh to Make Big Fights

Former champion says Saudi-backed funding now drives many of the sport’s biggest fights

Tim Bradley says many of boxing’s biggest fights now depend on Saudi funding. The former two-division champion made the comments on his YouTube channel while discussing the sport’s current business climate.

Bradley criticized the direction of the sport and the way several of its largest cards are financed. He argued that promoters complain publicly about Saudi involvement while still placing fighters on those events when the purses are available. In Bradley’s view, the current business structure has created a situation in which the biggest fights often depend on outside financial backing rather than traditional boxing markets.

“Everybody in boxing needs Turki Alalshikh because the big fights going to get made,” Bradley said on his channel. “Turki Alalshikh paying y’all money.”

Bradley made the comments on his YouTube channel while discussing the current business climate in boxing and the increasing influence of Saudi-backed events.

Saudi cards have staged several of the sport’s most prominent fights during the past two years, particularly in Riyadh, where events financed by Saudi investment have brought together fighters from rival promotional companies. Those shows frequently require cooperation between promoters who normally operate in separate markets in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Bradley argued that financial backing from Saudi Arabia has become a major factor behind those collaborations. According to Bradley, many promoters place fighters on Saudi cards because the purses offered there exceed what many traditional boxing events currently generate.

“They might complain about him, but they need him,” Bradley said while discussing the subject.

Bradley also suggested that the financial power behind those events has changed how fights are organized at the top level of the sport. In his view, promoters regularly work together on Saudi cards because the available funding allows bouts to be arranged that might otherwise struggle to reach a financial agreement.

The former champion delivered the criticism bluntly, but his remarks reflect a growing discussion inside boxing about where the money for the sport’s biggest fights now originates. Bradley’s comments suggest that Saudi-backed events have become a significant factor whenever the largest fights are assembled.