Has the WWE ever promoted a boxing match?
The pro-wrestling empire of the WWE has dabbled in boxing over the years.
The world of professional wrestling is bizarre but entertaining. The sport has several high-profile promoters. Companies such as New Japan Pro Wrestling and All Elite Wrestling regularly make headlines, but it's World Wrestling Entertainment that rules the sport.
Furthermore, they've dabbled in other sports beyond pro-wrestling as well.
Specifically, they've done some combat sports promotion. In the '90s, the McMahon wrestling empire attempted to expand into other sports such as bodybuilding and American football. Both of those ventures were high-profile failures.
However, their foray into boxing isn't nearly as discussed. In 1997, the company promoted Sugar Ray Leonard's return to boxing to face Hector Camacho.
The fight was a one-sided affair, with 'Macho' winning by knockout. Following the contest, Leonard re-entered retirement and WWE never promoted another match in the sport.
24 years ago today, Héctor Camacho defeated Sugar Ray Leonard with a 5th round TKO.
‘Macho’ improved to 63-3-1 and Leonard fell to 36-3-1 in what would be the last fight of his illustrious career. 🥊 https://t.co/HrNixzK9LG
Stephanie McMahon discusses promoting boxing
While their first foray into the sport was a failure, Stephanie McMahon has revealed WWE might be in the combat sports business again.
The current era of the sport is a bit bizarre. While there are traditional stars in the sport, such as Tyson Fury, who's come up through the amateur scene to become champions, that's not entirely the norm anymore. YouTubers have recently helped bring the sport to the mainstream.
Specifically, Jake and Logan Paul have become massive pay-per-view draws despite not being standard boxers. For his part, 'The Maverick' has also become a star in the wrestling world and recently squared off in the WWE ring against Roman Reigns.
It's possible, due to their association with the Paul brothers, that WWE is looking to re-enter the combat world. At the Wells Fargo TMT Summit, CEO Stephanie McMahon revealed that the company is looking into promoting the sport.
She stated:
“Or it’s another bigger opportunity around a business that is, you know, kind of all over the place like boxing. Who's the lineal champion? Who's the WBC champion? Who's the this — it's kind of it's all over the place. That’s where professional wrestling was some 40 years ago."
She continued:
"My father, Vince McMahon, who was the Chairman and CEO, obviously, had the opportunity to roll up all of those different territories and create one major brand in WWE that has now gone from a regional, territorial, content play to a global media franchise. And how can we then replicate that in other areas, with boxing being an idea of one of them.”