Pretty much everyone has an opinion on the recently announced “fight” (it will really be an exhibition, a show) between Tank Davis and Jake Paul – and not everyone is happy about the bout taking place. Not at all. But Andre Berto, in speaking with Fight Hype, perhaps put things into perspective better than anyone.
Berto explained that, like it or not, we hardcore fight fans, the sport of boxing is “all about entertainment.” Heck, maybe this is the way it’s always been, but for sure, these days, with so many ‘curiosity fights’ taking place, with YouTubers like Paul pulling in so many fans and viewers, it’s apparent that the sport is more showbizz than it has ever been.
“Tank Doesn’t Care What You Think Anymore”
Berto, like other people, says he understands why Tank is “going for the bag,” as in going for the big money a fight with Paul can and will bring: it’s because Tank “doesn’t care what you think anymore.”
Half-out of the sport in the opinion of some, Berto included, after his draw with Lamont Roach (who Tank should be fighting next, this if he cared at all about his legacy, which he obviously doesn’t), Tank was perhaps looking at walking away. Instead, a massive payday the type he couldn’t turn down came his way.
And really, Tank cannot lose, literally, as the November “fight” will be an exhibition and will not go down on his official record. How much money Tank will pull in we don’t know, but it will be in the millions. And Berto says that although all “true boxing fans are upset,” Tank himself couldn’t give a hoot.
“I see a lot of people in the comments, of course they’re upset about it because they’re true boxing fans,” Berto said of the Tank-Paul bout. “But listen, as of right now the state of boxing is all the way entertainment, it’s all about entertainment…..People don’t understand how this boxing game goes. I’m not surprised he made a fight like that because he doesn’t care what you think anymore. The way he felt after the Roach fight, how he felt like everybody turned on him, he was already talking about retirement. Now this man is going to get the bag.”
Legacy Or Just Business – Where Does Tank Go From Here?
Again, Tank will be a very rich man come November, when his cheque clears, but what then? Will Tank ever fight another real fight? Does he care at all about his legacy? Or is Tank a businessman now and nothing else?
Disturbingly, plenty of other talented fighters may look at Tank and decide to follow his lead. Just where will the great sport of boxing be in, say, 20 or thirty years?
