Muhammad Ali’s grandson tells Congress to stay out of the boxing ring

Muhammad Ali’s grandson, professional boxer Nico Ali Walsh, has a message to Congress: Butt out of boxing.

He told the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee on Wednesday to keep federal boxing regulations as is under the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act, which protects professional boxers from exploitative business practices, instead of passing the Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act.

The new bill, passed by the House, would create a new professional boxing system called Unified Boxing Organizations, or UBOs, which would operate independently of sanctioning organizations and be regulated by state athletic commissions. Mr. Walsh warned that such entities could control the entirety of fights and promotions, meaning boxers’ “choice becomes theoretical, not real.”

“The Ali Act was built on a simple principle: The people controlling fighters should not also control the entire marketplace those fighters depend on. The separation exists to prevent conflicts of interest and exploitation,” he said. “The new Muhammad Ali Boxing Revival Act would undermine that principle by allowing one entity to operate across motion, management and matchmaking. It removes independence.”

Oscar De La Hoya, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, said UBOs would let a promoter create an entity that serves as both promoter and governing body — mirroring the existing Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts system — and create a closed system controlling rankings, titles and opportunities.

As long as UBOs comply with their own rules, they would not violate the Ali Act, he said, while traditional promoters like himself would still be required to comply with full financial disclosures and reporting requirements.

“In other words, one system operates under transparency and accountability, while the UBOs do not,” the 1992 Olympic gold medalist said.

Nick Khan, president of World Wrestling Entertainment, argued that boxing has never had that structure, but instead has a patchwork of sanctioning bodies whose business model is “charging boxers money for the right to be called champions.”

He said UBOs can “do what major sports do: promote competition, develop talent, enforce consistent standards across one roof.”

He added that the World Boxing Council, a sanctioning body, recognizes 163 champions across 18 weight classes.

“To state the obvious, there should simply be 18 champions across 18 weight classes,” he said.

Mr. Walsh, however, said that this system makes fighters “fight each other to become unified and become the undisputed champion.”

He and de La Hoya agreed that UBOs would segregate the sport, making it even more unclear who the best of the best is.

The bill would also establish a national minimum payment per round for all professional boxers and create a first-time national minimum coverage of $50,000 for injuries sustained during a bout.

When it comes to financial transparency, de La Hoya said UBOs would have to answer to shareholders, while in the current system, they answer to fighters directly.

Additionally, since the Ultimate Fighting Championship was purchased 30 years ago, there has not been one death of a UFC fighter, Mr. Khan said, while in the past 30 years of boxing, 63 fighters have died within a week of their bouts.

Mr. Walsh said no boxer or promoter would disagree that health and safety concerns can be added to the sport.

“We always benefit more from them, but we can do that without stripping the fighters of their rights, which I believe is what the Revival Act is going to do,” he said.