Lou DiBella Says New Ali Act Doesn’t ‘Protect Fighters’

Boxing promoter Lou DiBella says the new bill called the “Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act” would benefit promotions like TKO Group Holdings, more than it would help fighters.

The Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act was made to protect boxers from unfair contracts, promote fair rankings, and ensure transparency. However, the new bill proposes a significant change: it would allow unified boxing organizations to create their own championship titles and rankings, separate from the sanctioning bodies. This model is similar to the UFC, where the promotion controls the titles and rankings.

Critics, including DiBella, argue that this could hurt fighters who aren’t major stars, as it would concentrate power in the hands of a few promotions, potentially leading to less competition and fewer opportunities for boxers.

A promotion would have little incentive to give a title shot to a deserving but lesser-known fighter who doesn’t sell tickets. Instead, they could simply choose to have their champion fight a big-name opponent with a less impressive record who would generate more money. This would stifle the careers of skilled fighters. 

DiBella Reacts

“It’s not an Ali Act. It’s an act that allows the promoter to be a sanctioning organization, and it’s also written in a way that makes it very clear that it’s favourable to TKO. I don’t think it protects fighters. I think if people are astute and they’re talking to fighters, or fighters are astute and they have good lawyers, or they’re reading the act themselves, they would see that in all probability, this act will hurt the superstar fighter, who will not have the market leverage he would otherwise have. DiBella had this to say. 

“Interestingly, it may not hurt the run-of-the-mill fighter. The guy that right now is struggling to feed himself because this thing requires if someone is going to be their own sanctioning body, they have to provide medical coverage, (and) training facilities.

“Historically, the UFC and the WWE, with respect to people that tour with them and perform for them, aren’t stars; those people can make ends meet better than the lower-level guy in boxing. So, I don’t know that this model that TKO will put into place is gonna hurt everybody. I’m not saying it’s gonna hurt everybody. But this is not an act designed to create a fair playing field, nor is it an act designed to protect fighters,” Lou DiBella said