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Holm at Tuesday’s Press Conference

With the announcement of Holly Holm leaving boxing for the greener pastures of MMA, there is some worry that many in the sweet science may jump ship. While Holm is a unique case (she trains at one of the best MMA gyms on the planet), boxer Jessica Rakoczy is looking to get back in the MMA game, and while Stacey Reile is looking into MMA training.

As we look into the sport of women’s boxing, it still has a legacy. It’s more international now, with countries like Mexico and Germany having female matches four to six times a month. It has been a while since we have seen a televised female fight in the states. Major boxing cards rarely have a female undercard bout that is aired on pay-per-view or cable channels. In contrast, women’s division in MMA has seen increased coverage, with many organizations having at least one female match on their cards. The UFC has stepped up with getting a slot once a month to their growing women’s divisions.

A lot of female boxers are frustrated and for good reason. Promoters in the U.S. have been neglecting who could be a valuable resource in terms of making the sport popular again. The rise of women’s boxing in the Olympics has seen stars such as Marlen Esparza and Mikaela Mayer getting deals with Cover Girl and Dr. Pepper respectively. Both are still perusing amateur careers and hope for 2016 Olympic slots. Yet the pros aren’t getting great sponsorship deals, and not being profiled as they should.

Why? One reason is that promoters are still stuck in the “One or two match” model of marketing cards, which is so 20th century. The MMA model makes sure that undercard fighters get announced as a part of the card. Besides the fact the people feel they are getting more bang for their ppv buck, they get more fighters interesting in self promotion.

On the boxers’ end, they are starting to find out the secret about getting some promotion as a fighter – the use of social media. Many have taken to twitter to start rallying the fans and getting their fights on TV. This is something female MMA fighters have learned over the past three years, and it has been success. Ronda Rousey’s rocketship to stardom wouldn’t have been as fast if it weren’t for her twitter account.

A good portion of women’s MMA popularity is the MMA media community in general. Many of the top sites were based on homegrown journalists in the digital age. Boxing sites are less relevant with them focusing on only the top fighters in the divisions and televised fights. Little coverage is given to those working their way up. The notable exception is WBAN.com, which has been a leader in women’s boxing coverage.

Boxing as a whole needs to change with the times, and look into making superstars out of more than just a relegated few. Female fighters especially have a marketable edge if Esparza and Mayer have any indication. Besides the marketing, “the fairer sex” are just as aggressive in a boxing ring as they are in a cage.

We can only hope the boxing promoters and media evolve with the times and give these fighters an opportunity to shine,

Filed under: MMA

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