Great concept and fun fights, the 5 vs 5 delivered

BN weekly columnist Joe Hughes looks back at last week’s Riyadh card, the possibility of future events and how Wilder has already exceeded expectations and has nothing left to prove.

The Matchroom vs Queensberry 5 vs 5 last weekend delivered as a show and as a concept. It was entertaining, the fights were good and you were actually interested in watching the whole card. 

The rivalry between the promoters added a bit of extra fun to it. We got five evenly-matched fights, something that is, unfortunately, a rarity in professional boxing. Most shows have an undercard of very one-sided match ups and then usually one, sometimes two, more evenly matched fights at the top of the bill. 

Fingers crossed, this could be the start of more cards of this nature, featuring multiple 50/50 high-level matches, promoter v promoter or teams of some sort. 

What boxing fan wouldn’t be up for watching UK vs USA, Mexico vs Puerto Rico or Golden Boy vs Top Rank? 

Especially if those in the teams were the very best fighters that could represent their team. For example, in an ideal world, Matchroom vs Queensberry would have featured Joshua vs Fury as the heavyweight showpiece of the night. 

How about a team tournament, possibly featuring the likes of Queensberry, Matchroom, Boxxer, Golden Boy, Top Rank, PBC, etc.? More cross-promotional matchups should take place, which is a positive for the sport. 

Frank Warren was probably the biggest winner out of everyone on the night. It ended up a one-sided affair in terms of the team scoring. Eddie Hearn took it well and was happy to laugh at himself over it. I’m sure we’ll see the teams rematch. 

The biggest loser on the night was Deontay Wilder. In his last two fights, he’s seemed uninterested, unable to pull the trigger and a bit gunshy. 

In life, however, you couldn’t have “won” much more than he has. He started boxing to provide for his disabled daughter, and he ended up doing that, winning an Olympic bronze medal and the WBC heavyweight championship of the world. Earning tens of millions of dollars—more than his daughter could ever need. He should retire now while his health is still intact.  

I was in London this week for an interview with the BBBofC as part of the process of getting my professional trainer’s licence. You get asked a few questions regarding the sport, some of the rules and what you would do in certain scenarios. It went well and I’ve now got to do a little course and I’ll be able to get my licence.