The Logan Paul-KSI fight was what we thought it would be. Entertaining content but much ado about nothing. Whether you watched it or not doesn’t matter to the power brokers who put it on. Gen Z fans showed up at Staples Center to support their YouTube heroes (12,137 attendance), including “Biebs” and the fight topped social media timelines across the globe.
Sure, 12K fans aren’t a sell-out, but it is a solid turnout that a card of Devin Haney and Billy Joe Saunders wouldn’t come close to drawing. Then there are the DAZN subscriptions sold to fans who would never pony up to watch a pro fight. Add it all up and it was a good night for promoter Eddie Hearn, DAZN, and Paul/KSI, but will it be for boxing? Time will only tell.
KSI wins a controversial decision
Hopefully, this is the last time I type KSI but after a controversial win that Paul said he was disputing, I get the feeling that it may not be.
New champ stays busy in first defense
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Devin Haney’s “keeping busy” fight lived up to its name. The newly anointed WBC lightweight champ (24-0, 15 KOs) dominated the fight against the awkward but game Alfredo Santiago (12-1, 4 KOs) but he didn’t have a “Oh Dayum” moment on the big stage much like Ryan Garcia did last week (who also did a nice job in the broadcast booth for the KSI-Paul fight).
“He was very crafty. I went in there and was able to adjust,” Haney said post-fight of Santiago. “I got this opponent on a week notice. I’m a true champion and can fight through everything. It’s all experience, and it all comes with the fight game. l got the win, on to the next.”
Early on, Haney did flash his special combination of power and finesse that showed why promoter Eddie Hearn has hailed him as the next face of DAZN.
Saunders US debut falls flat
Billy Joe Saunders (28-0, 14 KOs) won his fight over Marcelo Esteban Coceres (28-1-1, 15 KOs) with a heroic 11 round knockout but he lost a chance to earn millions in his next fight after an admittedly lackluster performance. “There’s no excuses,” Saunders confessed afterward of his US debut. “The performance [was]not worthy [of]Canelo [Alvarez] or [Daniel] Jacobs,” Saunders said. “I knew in my head I had to get him out of here. My timing was off, my movement was off, everything was off. I wanted to impress the crowd. Hopefully, you enjoyed the KO, all I could do tonight.”
After Saturday night, the WBO super middleweight champ is more likely to get a fight with Canelo’s big bro Ramon Alvarez but you never know.
