“At the end of the day,” Choko says regarding his nine-year journey to write The Future of Boxing, “I’m just the messenger.” Then, in an Ali-like shift from humility to self-promotion: “I just went out there, met all the greats – never been done before – and said, ok, ‘What do we need to do?’, ‘Where is this going?’, and by the way, ‘Explain to me, to us, to everybody who’s gonna read the book, who you are and what motivated you to become a fighter.’ The final product is a unique compendium of the past, present, and future of a controversial sport.
Boxing has never shied away from controversy but it now finds itself at a crossroads. With mixed martial arts threatening boxing’s status as the premiere pugilistic sport and a divided hierarchy that has fractured boxing’s sanctioning bodies, boxing is losing some of its allure.
Choko identifies this schism in boxing’s sanctioning bodies – the World Boxing Association (WBA), the World Boxing Council (WBC), the International Boxing Federation (IBF), and the World Boxing Organization (WBO) – as a key problem the sport must resolve in order to re-legitimize itself.
The WBA, WBC, IBF, and WBO are the ones that we know," Choko points out. "There are many that we don';t really know, like the IBO (International Boxing Organization). So you have many others that exist, and it's a mess."
Unlike most professional sports where one champion is crowned, boxing’s fractured system means there are multiple championship belts across all 17 weight classes, which makes it hard for anyone to claim the title of ‘undisputed champion of the world.’
This problem has been exacerbated by the Klitschko brothers, Vitali and Wladimir, two of the top heavyweight fighters. Although Wladimir holds the WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO belts and is widely considered the heavyweight champion, his older brother Vitali has held the WBC heavyweight belt since 2008. But as brothers, they won’t fight each other.
“If you go into most countries and ask someone at random, ‘Who is the heavyweight champion of the world?’ they’ll say Mike Tyson, because no one since Tyson has had the same impact on the heavyweight division.”
There is also the reality of less marquee rivalries. With all due respect to the battles between Pacquiao and Marquez, boxing no longer captivates casual or even die-hard sports fans the way it once did with repeated contests between Ali and Frazier, Ali and Norton, Leonard and Duran, Leonard and Hearns, Gatti and Ward, and Tyson and whomever.
Many of today’s boxers (and promoters) prefer to conserve a perfect record and maintain the illusion of invincibility than take on all challengers. Choko is firm: “The O must go! The truth is, it’s ok to lose. You can’t win the Stanley Cup every year. People want to be entertained, win or lose.”
Choko’s concern about this schism among sanctioning bodies and the agendas of promoters is one that is shared by much of the boxing establishment, including legendary trainer Angelo Dundee, who passed away in February of 2012 at the age of 90.
“Angelo was not happy about the fact that there are four sanctioning bodies and you end up not knowing who’s first. It’s chaos. Was he worried about the future? Yeah, of course he was worried about the future.”
Dundee is widely considered the greatest trainer the boxing world has ever known, having worked in Muhammad Ali’s corner from 1960 to 1981. "But Dundee didn't merely ride the coattails of 'The Greatest'." Over his remarkable Hall-of-Fame career, Dundee worked with 15 world boxing champions, including Sugar Ray Leonard, José Nápoles, and George Foreman.
Dundee also became a central figure in Choko’s magnum opus. After being Choko’s first major interview, Dundee became a vital ally setting up further interviews, introducing Choko to many of the greats, and eventually making good on a promise to fulfill Choko’s dream of meeting Ali. Dundee did for Choko what he had done for all of his fighters, holding the roles of confidant, mentor, and friend.
And what did Ali have to say about the future of boxing? In typical sly and enigmatic fashion Ali declared that “the future of boxing is me making a comeback to the ring.” So simple and yet profound, teetering between joke and hubristic self-belief, it’s enough to make one pause and wonder whether Ali might actually believe it and whether boxing might actually need it.
But before the next Rumble in the Jungle, Alexandre Choko will take centre stage with The Future of Boxing in Montreal on Tuesday, June 4, at the Rumble at the Ritz. Alongside Sugar Ray Leonard, Jake LaMotta (who inspired Martin Scorsese’s brilliant film Raging Bull), Leon Spinks, and Joe Cortez, the event will be the official launch of the collector’s edition of The Future of Boxing.
The event will feature a live auction of boxing paraphernalia worn by Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard, a cooking competition refereed by Joe Cortez, a red-carpet cocktail at 6 p.m., and a 5-course dinner beginning at 7 p.m. In addition, everyone in attendance will receive a signed copy of the collector’s edition of The Future of Boxing, and will be able to mingle and have photos taken with the boxing legends in attendance.
It seems the future of boxing is now.
by Geoffrey Lansdell
To purchase tickets for this unique event, contact Laura Mora at Conservus: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or (514) 284-2246, ext. 328. For more information on The Future of Boxing, author Alexandre Choko, and to order the book, visit http://futureofboxing.com/
Please check back with The Warehouse for our coverage of the Rumble at The Ritz, as well as the story Alexandre Choko tells of finally meeting Muhammad Ali on the sad occasion of Angelo Dundee’s funeral.
