De la Hoya attacks Turki Alalshikh and Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has mounted a concerted effort to dethrone Las Vegas as the world capital of boxing. What they have in their corner is money, and a ton of it. What is against them is the palpable lack of any sense of atmosphere. A room full of multi-millionaires quietly going about their business while a fight is incidentally taking place is a slap in the face to all die-hard fight fans.

Las Vegas is that setting where Muhammad Ali closed his career, where Mike Tyson went down in history as the youngest heavyweight champion ever, and then again when he disgraced his legacy by biting Evander Holyfield’s ear, where Canelo Álvarez became one of the best pound for pound boxers, and where Floyd Mayweather defended his undefeated career.

Saudi Arabia, however, has bought their way into the big time, hosting huge money fights in recent years. Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, Dmitry Bivol, Oleksandr Usyk, and Callum Smith have all already fought in Saudi Arabia.

Now, Turki bin Abdul Mohsen Al-Sheikh, a promoter from Saudi Arabia, is seeking to debut in North America with the Terence Crawford fight in Los Angeles on August 3. While many in the sport support Alalsheikh’s moves, if not emphatically at least with some degree of resignation, this development is a situation that has provoked a fierce reaction from Golden Boy’s Óscar de la Hoya.

“Nobody I mean nobody is coming to my country and or city and think they can take over boxing. I am a fighter first and I will fight hard for what I love the most and that’s Boxing . Viva!!!!!!” wrote the ‘Golden Boy’ on his ‘X’ account. That last word, viva, means “live” and is a reference to the fact that boxing in Saudi Arabia makes a personal appearance by the majority of fight fans impossible. Boxing, says De La Hoya, should be enjoyed in person, not just on tv.

Las Vegas withstands the onslaught

Despite the many millions of dollars that Saudi has offered to great boxers, there are still boxers who prefer to fight in Las Vegas. Gervonta Davis vs Ryan García, Devin Haney vs Vasyl Lomachenko , Terence Crawford vs. Errol Spence Jr., Canelo Álvarez vs. Jermell Charlo, and David Benavidez vs. Demetrius Andrade, were all held last year in Sin City.

“Riyadh can pay me a lot of money and give me a big stage, but that would be unfair to the fans who are in the United States. The boxers would not have the publicity or recognition that they have in Las Vegas,” said de la Hoya.

Saudi Arabia continues to seduce

Despite this, Saudi Arabia continues to seduce great boxers, courting boxers like Saúl ‘Canelo’ Álvarez and Gervonta Davis. The Mexican champ has expressed his interest, while Davis does not seem to be very convinced and has even reportedly demanded two Ferraris to fight in Riyadh.

“I would like to do two, but Saúl is interested in also fighting in Saudi Arabia where the doors have been opened for boxing and I believe that would also be a good option,” said Eddy Reynoso, the Canelo’s coach.