A Fresh Half-Dozen on Misfits 004 (& The Case For Influencer Boxing)
Something, something, Logan Paul, right?
I fell in love with the sport of boxing after watching the highlights of the first Deontay Wilder/Tyson Fury super-fight in the early months of 2019. The lore, the spectacle, the idea of Fury, a man nearly 400 pounds just years earlier, on the edge of suicide (check out his autobiography, Behind the Mask, fantastic read) able to rise from the canvas following one of the hardest two-punch combos I’ve seen in my lifetime—at the hands of the aforementioned Bronze Bomber. Fury rose up like a man awoken from the dead, and pushed the pace for the remainder of the final round, scraping a draw. The rest is history. A rematch and a trilogy followed, the latter an all-out war between the modern-day Ali & Frazier. As my love for the sport grew, I’ve been blessed with watching the likes of Haney, Garcia, Davis, Joshua, Ruiz Jr., Lomachenko, Crawford, among others, in the prime of their careers in the ring.
Yet, one thing that’s always fallen short on each PPV boxing event I’ve watched (*cough*…and maybe motivated me to find a sketchy website to stream said cards for free, albeit legal or not) has & seemingly will always be: the undercard. If you put a gun to my head, I could not name a single matchup—looking down the cards—that I can remember from the dozens of mega-fights I’ve watched, outside of the occasional co-main or two.
The problem? Well, it’s not a skill issue. It’s more…that I simply don’t have any reason to care about most of them. For one: on the recent Tank Davis card, almost all the way down the card, one -4000 favorite after another. I don’t give a sh*t if someone’s 16-0, on a big win streak, making their pro debut, etc. A fight with a -4000 favorite (we’re gonna block out AJ vs. Ruiz 1 for this analogy) that ISN’T a main event, has no reason on paper to be entertaining. Maybe I’m a casual, maybe I’m under-educated, but I’m rarely familiar with fighters on these undercards, as well. Surrounding factors do their best to hurt the watchability of them, as well: the arena is usually empty & quiet; the commentators often treat undercard fights as background noise, lacksadaiscally calling them. Additionally, the outcomes rarely seem to matter in the moment, given most fans lack of awareness beyond maybe one or two divisions, let alone the few stars that exist within them. Hell, why aren’t we seeing fights like Ruiz v. Ortiz billed as a co-main to Wilder v. Helenius? What have the pair of Andy Ruiz & Luiz Ortiz done to deserve a stand-alone PPV fight? The solution to the under-card problem is simple to me. Intertwine the storylines. The lore. The entertainment. Give us, the fans, more of what makes sports so great: an inter-connected web of canon that has the chance to shift so greatly at the heels of a single result, and to no surprise…
That’s exactly what Misfits is doing with influencer boxing.
If you don’t believe me, believe the 5-year deal that Misfits just signed with DAZN (yes, we stan Eddie Hearn here on Donuts) to continue their X series of boxing events. Moreover, as per DAZN:
The first show alone, headlined by KSI in August, attracted nearly 2 million global viewers on DAZN (with 90% of those tuning in being first time subscribers to DAZN), with the highlights and build-up content generating a further 30 million views across DAZNs social platforms.
Money talks, y’all. Anyways. Before we delve into the dozen I’ve got prepped for you today: why ‘YouTube boxing’? What’s the use? For one: it’s more than that. Call it ‘crossover boxing’, as Misfits terms it nowadays. We’ve seen ex-UFC champions Tyron Woodley AND Anderson Silva box against former Disney Channel star-turned-YouTuber Jake Paul. Undefeated pros among the likes of Idris Virgo, Joe Fournier, and Tommy Fury (pro may be a stretch) are all active on the scene, as well.
More importantly, influencer boxing has bred a whole new generation of not just fighters—but fans too. Consider the tens of millions of followers across the board from these social media stars, such as the Paul brothers, KSI, Austin McBroom, Bryce Hall, Alex Wassabi, Deji, Joe Weller, and more. Ex-athletes such as Le’Veon Bell, Adrian Peterson, Ben Askren, Nate Robinson, and poor, poor Tyron Woodley. The reach of this newborn sub-genre of boxing has brought a plethora of previously unexposed fans into the arena, and gotten the likes of even myself (yes) to sign up for contact boxing sessions at my local boxing gym (worth every penny, I’m coming for the Bantamweight belts). Back to my point on the shortcomings of traditional boxing undercards, this is what influencer boxing, and Misfits specifically, is executing to perfection. Front-to-back cards packed with action, lore, storylines, unexplored action, and simply one banger after another, until the final bell rings at the end of the night. Now…
ORDER UP!
Let’s delve into the 6 most memorable things about Misfits 004. I’ll link highlights to all of the mentioned bouts; I additionally encourage you to delve into the depths of influencer boxing lore once you wrap up reading this piece (start at The W.A.D.E. Concept and work your way down the YouTube rabbithole from there).
#1: KSI knocked Temper the f*ck out
Maybe. Just maybe. There’s a feasible to path to fighting Jake Paul (the consensus P4P king of the influencer boxing scene), for KSI. Sporting more fluid, quick footwork, JJ (KSI) made quick work of FaZe Temper, catching him with a beautiful right hand to left hook combo as the first round drew to a close. If you watch the replay, JJ sets it up beautifully with a quick feint of the left jab, backing Temper ever-so slightly up and opening up his defense for the right to connect. This was THE statement fight for JJ, and he made one giant Whopper of one to boot. Shades of Jake Paul v. Ben Askren. Now, can he show us continued improvement in his (supposed) next and final tune-up bout before the Jake Paul super-fight? Personally, I’d be interested to see how he fairs as the rounds push on, with all the improvement we’ve seen in his technique and punching, will it last, or will we revert to the windmills of yester-year. Perhaps, against the likes of…
#2: Salt Papi. THE Prize Fight.
Salt Papi gained stardom in the influencer boxing scene after his vicious, 6-punch combo K.O. of Andy Warski on Misfits 001, all inside of 30, yes, THIRTY seconds. Hailing from the Phillipines, I’ve heard just a tad too many Manny Pacquiao comparisons for my liking, already. But hot d*mn, after his bout vs. Josh Brueckner on Misfits 005… maybe they’ve got a point. For one and a half rounds, Salt Papi danced around, sneering at every punch Josh threw, laughing in his face, encouraging him to throw some more. And, with barely any visible effort, threw a murderous-looking counter left that sent Josh to the canvas in round two, one he was unable to get up from. Let’s not gloss over Josh, either. The dude is 6’1, chiseled like Captain America, and his stature forced Papi to put on extra pounds in order to make the catchweight bout. No pushover either, previously 2-0 in the scene. But, man. Papi stands alone in just how confident he looks in the ring. Has he secretly trained since his childhood? Wouldn’t put it past him. I don’t see who else gives Papi a challenge besides KSI, or hell, even Jake Paul, at this point. I’d buy either PPV instantly. If you haven’t clicked on a single link in this piece so far, look at the aforementioned Salt Papi ones. Please.
#3: Pineda Is EVERYTHING Great About Influencer Boxing
Luis Alcarez Pineda was a lanky, awkward-looking ‘professional’ boxer sporting a record of 2-5 (0 KOs), when he was suddenly thrust onto the Misfits 001 card to fight KSI for his grandiose ‘2 fights in 1 night’ spiel. Pineda looked out of place the entire week building up to the fight, and almost didn’t even make the walk out to the ring when his time came to fight KSI. Then, following the first bell, Pineda proceeded to get absolutely dominated by JJ for 3 rounds, knocked down over and OVER again, complaining about nonexistent back of the head punches, whining until the ref finally put him out of his misery. It was embarrasing for the so-called ‘professional.’ Plenty of memes spawned as a result. KSI himself felt disappointed at Luis’ effort. His win was discredited by many as a result.
Yet, when the lights faded to black in the OVO Arena, us fans clung to the edge of our seats, waiting to see who the “mystery opponent” would be, to fight the Jake Paul-lackey BDave. Could it be Alex Wassabi, finally on a Misfits card after pulling out against KSI in their previously-scheduled bout? Joe Weller, making his return to the ring for the first time in years? No. As the sounds of the Undertaker rung throughout the crowd, it was none other than the formerly disgraced Pineda! Watching it myself, I couldn’t believe it. I was convinced it was Wassabi, and seeing Pineda, I was shocked, but honestly excited. The crowd roared! The Mexican boxer was courted with the opposite of his first Misfits bout, an entire arena behind him. With it at the helm, Pineda showed us everything he lacked against KSI: confidence, and moreover, the ability to fight. Flicking his jab, using his length to his advantage, wielding some impressive combinations, he dominated BDave for all three rounds, with an impressive knockdown thanks to a massive right hand coming out of the clinch, OVO Arena erupting as a result. Bravo, Luis, bravo. Even KSI showed him love after the fight.
#4: It’s Time To Re-Evaluate Slim
Following his highlight-reel KO of Temper on Misfits 001, Slim was elevated to the upper echelon of influencer boxers, in conversations with the likes of Jake Paul, KSI, and AnEsonGib. His stock continued to rise after a four-round battering of Ryan Taylor at Misfits 002. Yet, after this past weekend’s card, I’m not sold on Slim deserving main event billing, quite yet, despite a UD win over Tom Zanetti (40-37, 39-37, 39-38). For one, he gassed out after one round and some change, and couldn’t drop Zanetti, a relatively inexperienced boxer, in his first-ever bout. Zanetti arguably won rounds 3 and 4 as well, rocking Slim in the third with a massive left hook, followed up with a straight right. Slim “The Hitman” failed to add another body to his record, remarking in the post-fight interview that he wants to fight at a lower weight in the future. Adding insult to injury, Slim’s last two wins were embarrassed on the same card: Temper slept easily by KSI, and Ryan Taylor’s orbital bone fractured in just one jab by the novice rapper-turned-boxer Swarmz.
#5: Elle Brooke is Must-See-TV
Imagine being able to tell your kids you made it rich, not just off of Love Island stardom, but stacks-on-stacks thanks to an upstart OnlyFans page, and also beating the sh*t out of people inside the boxing ring. Well, meet Elle Brooke. Having previously debuted and won on last year’s Kingpyn Boxing co-main against AJ Bunker, Elle walked into the ring this past weekend with a nine-inch height disadvantage against Instagram model Faith Ordway, who to her credit looked crisp in the footage I watched leading up to the fight (I’m talking boxing, to be clear). I heard plenty of armchair analysts like myself say the same thing over and over building up to this bout: all Faith’s gotta do is use that reach and height advantage and this will be a walk in the park.
Spoiler alert: watch the fight. Almost immediately, Faith seems to revert from boxer to Instagram model, throwing wild hammerfists as the exchanges moved towards the inside. Elle thrived as the fight turned into a brawl, catching Faith with a CLEAN overhand right, sending her to the canvas midway through the first round. To Faith’s credit, she got back up, traded for the next minute or so, yet Elle stood tall, absorbing all the blows. Eventually, as the round drew near a close, Elle unloaded left after right, landing flush, and the ref stepped in to save Faith (protesting, despite looking like a tomato) from further harm. I don’t care who’s next for Elle in the ring (Let’s be honest, the likes of Fangs, Astrid Wett, and even 6ar6ie6 are no match for her—the women’s division needs more depth), bring it on. Elle is the perfect combo: pure violence and grade A entertainment (inside AND outside the boxing ring).
#6: Idris Virgo Needs More Love
With the influencer boxing scene originating largely from the UK, its to no surprise that we’ve scene a few former Love Island stars emerge as top names. Tommy Fury and Anthony “Pretty Boy” Taylor fought on the undercard of the first Jake Paul/Tyron Woodley bout, the former winning a somewhat mundane UD. Yet, despite the starpower surrounding Fury, thanks to his older brother Tyson’s dominance in the (pro) heavyweight division and continued beef with Jake Paul (for the third time, they’re officially scheduled to fight, will Fury pull out again?), and the loud-mouthed, fast-paced, alluring fight promoter that Pretty Boy Taylor has evolved into, one thing is clear after Misfits 004: Idris Virgo is head and shoulders above the rest of the Love Island gang. Maybe we’ve got to head back across the pond and tap into the rosters of the old “The Bachelor” & “The Bachelorette” seasons.
Pretty Boy Taylor did one helluva job selling this fight—I’ll tell you that. Off the heels of a three-second KO, yes, THREE-SECOND KO, against Ashley Rak-Su (a British R&B artist, and rather pathetic boxer) at Misfits 002, Taylor talked all the sh*t you could imagine leading up to his bout against Virgo. It peaked with Taylor SERANADING Virgo, like a crazed man, at their face-off days before the fight.
Virgo, however, touting a 12-0-1 professional record, looked like one of the most experienced fighters we’ve scene in the influencer scene, period. Across the four-round fight, all three judges scoring it 40-32 to Virgo, we witnessed a man with a gas tank that stands nearly alone in the Misfits promotion. Working off his jab, pacing his pressure to near perfection, Idris made Pretty Boy Taylor look like a damn fool: his signature gas-pedal like offense running out of juice after the first round, being knocked down in the third, and his mouthpiece falling out in the final round, shaky legs barely wobbling his body to the final bell. Virgo looked composed, technically sound, and his defense held solid to some vicious (albeit, wild) overhand rights from Taylor—who, despite the loss, his power & danger as a fighter are not to be understated. It’ll be interesting to see who Misfits matches Virgo up with next, given his prowess as one of the most talented all-around fighters in the current scene. A quick note to add: before this fight, I had no idea who the h*ll Virgo was. Misfits pairing him with the loud-mouthed Taylor is a perfect example of the brilliance of the promotions recent efforts to build the influencer boxing spectacle, lore & fandom: us fans tune in to see if Taylor’s antics & power can translate into ring success, yet even in a resounding loss, are able to bear witness to someone (largely unheard of in Virgo), technically brilliant, salivating after the fact at future bouts & challenges for him. Respect is earned, and fandom grows exponentially in this scene. I could write a massive piece on all the fights I want to see on upcoming Misfits cards. I’ll leave that for next time.