Barry Hearn has revealed his fears that the popularity of boxing could decrease unless the sport starts paying attention to the rise of mixed martial arts (MMA). The legendary promoter believes that MMA is establishing a growing fan base, with youngsters attracted by the “fast, physical action delivered in an entertaining style”.

MMA’s foremost brand is the UFC and fighters combine moves taken from disciplines including boxing, kickboxing, and wrestling. They fight in a claustrophobic cage formed in the shape of an octagon and the sport’s popularity has rocketed recently in the UK.

Indeed, this weekend sees upcoming star, Michael Bisping, compete at the Birmingham National Indoor Arena in front of a sell-out crowd. As well as the 10,000 spectators watching in the arena, the fight will be seen by fans in 150 countries who have access to the sports subscription channel, Setanta. Previous UFC events have attracted record-breaking crowds at the MEN arena in Manchester and the O2 Arena in London.

The sport has come a long way since it was formed in 1993. It was originally looked down upon as an activity which attempted to glamorise violence. John McCain, the Republican presidential candidate, even compared it to cockfighting. However, the UFC was taken over in 2001 and its image was transformed following the introduction of new rules and regulations.

These included the establishment of weight classes, official judges, and the enforced use of gloves and gum-shields. Such moves encouraged the general public to start viewing MMA as a valid sport, rather than an excuse to indulge in violence. Dana White, president of the UFC, believes that further success is imminent: “we want to be global, worldwide, just like soccer”.

Furthermore, White believes that the UK media has an important role to play in spreading the popularity of the sport. She has been quoted as saying that the British media know deep down that they would increase sales if they were to cover the sport.

When one views the statistics, it is difficult to disagree with Hearn’s latest comments. Whilst legendary promoters such as Frank Warren and Frank Maloney have defended boxing in the light of MMA, Hearn’s belief that boxing needs to “learn” from the new styles of fighting remains true.

Hearn has personally learnt from the sport, recently launching the Prizefighter Series, which sees eight fighters compete in a knockout tournament during one night of boxing. The Prizefighter Series will appeal to the audience of MMA, who have become accustomed to quick action. The promoter believes that it will instigate an “adrenalin fix” similar to the one provided by the action of UFC.

The launch was an extremely brave move by Hearn, who seems to be one of the only boxing promoters to realise that the sport needs to be entertaining as well as loyal to tradition.

Frank Maloney has stated that MMA is simply having its “fifteen minutes of fame”. This may turn out to be true, but whether or not boxing can ever fully recover from the lasting impact of these fifteen minutes will remain to be seen.

Written by Charlotte Cook