Evolution is defined as the gradual development of
something, especially from a simple to a more complex form… Big Knockout
Boxing, better known as BKB, is the antithesis of this… Traditional boxing as
we know it today offers a level of complexity that not many sports rival. It is competition in its purest form… two
athletes using their God given abilities to out-dual the other in combat. No team.
No equipment besides gloves. No
objects. Yet the strategy involved in a
prize fight takes the purest form of competition and turns it into a rare piece
of theater…
This past weekend, the Mandalay Bay Events Center played
host to BKB’s first pay-per-view fight card in the United States. The main event featured battle tested veterans
Gabriel Rosado and Brian Vera. On the
surface, this matchup equates to a pretty good scrap in traditional boxing… but
when offered with the added elements of BKB boxing, it’s much more enticing.
BKB features a pit instead of a traditional boxing ring with
a diameter of 17 feet. Bouts are seven
rounds and only two minutes long. What
BKB offers can only be truly appreciated by the eye. After watching Rosado KO Brian Vera with a
crushing counter right hand in the sixth round, I walked away wondering if this
was the future of the sport.
The action was heavy, as there’s really nowhere to hide in
the claustrophobic pit. It reminded me
of a video game, where both fighters are in one spot slipping and trading
punches with the slightest of lateral movement.
BKB was intense and I have to admit… I like it.
But let’s not get carried away fight fans… it will never
replace traditional boxing. I see it
more as an added element to the fight game… An entity that can take C+ fighters
like Gabe Rosado and Brian Vera and put on a good show. It’s a tremendous avenue for one-dimensional
fighters who may have lost their way in the traditional game.
See… we as people tend to overreact at the newest and
brightest objects of entertainment. The
public consensus across America is that boxing is dying… when in actuality it
couldn’t be further from the truth. Is
it where it once was? Definitely not.
But there’s two aspects of traditional boxing that will continue to
carry the sport… its history… and its diversity. BKB offers neither.
Everyone loves a war… two guys slugging it out until one
succumbs to defeat. It’s a part of
sports that’s unparalleled. But
remember, too much of one thing is never a good thing. It’s human nature. We need balance. Traditional boxing offers balance. For every Castillo-Corrales I… there’s a De
La Hoya-Mosley I. Two completely
different types of fights, but equally entertaining. There’s a beauty in being able to use the
ring to your advantage. The best fights
have a blend of it all… great boxing, movement and exchanges. BKB won’t be able to offer that.
The biggest proponent of BKB is its name… Big
Knockouts. The idea is that people want
to see more knockouts. People need to
once again see the deeper picture… it’s never the knockout, it’s who’s getting
knocked out or who’s doing the knocking out.
There’s a psychological aspect that the majority of sports fans fail to
realize. We don’t wanna just see knockouts,
we wanna see the best fighters in the world score knockouts. Traditional boxing makes us appreciate the
knockout! When Manny Pacquiao got put to sleep by that violent right hand
counter from Juan Manuel Marquez, the sporting world was shocked! In awe of
such a moment! It’s balance… and it’s
needed.
It’s also why I feel BKB is the perfect added element to
traditional boxing. Not an evolution of
the sport, but more of a component to garner new fans to the sweet
science. It’s also a perfectly constructed
bridging of the gap for MMA fans with a slight curiosity in boxing. I’m all for it!
I really hope Big Knockout Boxing is successful and branches
out to other cable providers and networks for the simple fact that in its
infancy, BKB has no choice but to offer exciting drama-filled matchups. It’s got a big hill to climb, but the
interest is there. They have a choice to
make… are they competing with traditional boxing or simply offering an
alternative? For their sake, I hope it’s
the latter.
Follow me on Twitter: @RLMalpica
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