I'm not that knowledgeable on the Ali Act or it's effects, but there's one thing I'm wary of. I always think about the "3P's." Pay, Protection, & Power:
- People always talk about fighter Pay and compare it to ball athletes as if ball athletes aren't the most overpaid people in the world. A big issue is the discrepancy, which isn't exactly "problem solved" in boxing right now, so i don't know what that would fix. But fighters should be getting paid more in general. And they should be getting it based more on athletic merit than fan attendance, because paying fighters more off their promotion than skills only condition fighters to not train their ability more than their instagram, and quality will drop overall. Pool the attendance numbers like tips and give it out based on performance, but fighters should get a fuller percentage than they do now.
- More pay makes sense mostly for fighters to be able to take care of or Protect themselves. Really, any athlete trades damage to their body for money, especially combat sports athletes, and healthcare would not only allow fighters to fight more, but longer. Add in the fact that their athletic window is much smaller than a standard career, and that's where retirement options, like a pension at the very least or free access to a financial planner, becomes important. I believe the Ali Act also was a big protection against the predatory nature of managers.
- That possibly could have partly increased boxers Power. Specifically, contracting power. If there's one thing a fighter SHOULDN'T have, it's this. It's one of the bigger ruinations of boxing. It's part of why fights don't get made, or fighters padding their records, or even bigger problems, like champions contracting their opponents shoes, gloves, trunk height, and even weight. Fucking boxing champs were defending their belts at catchweight cuz they knew they could fight smaller.
In my opinion, "Pay" is an issue that, of course more is always better but, most of the issue is just moving it around. "Protection" is the issue that should see the MOST progress, but that may be benefited by a fighters union. And "Power" is an issue that fighters shouldn't have any more of, or even less of. We already have too much ability for fighters to pick their opponents. Ideally, if an organization booked fights that made sense, that have equal benefit to both fighters, then you shouldn't even know your opponent before saying yes. You should know the date and the worth a victory would bring, then say yes and learn the opponent so you can train for them. But that would also require trust in the organization's booking, which, let's be honest, no fighter should have in the UFC.
