There are three types of boxing matches: amateur, professional and exhibition. With the first two, it is clear: as a rule, from amateur boxing, where they fight for cups, medals and a name, boxers then turn into pros. And already there they have the opportunity to become bright stars and earn big money.

In the first and second cases, active athletes box, and victory is the main task for them. Fighters fight a strictly regulated number of rounds. For an amateur fight, these are three rounds, but the number of rounds in a professional confrontation depends on the status of the fight itself. Regular rating fights last 4-6-8-10 rounds. Championship fights for titles and belts are scheduled for 12 rounds.

When a boxer in the status of a star ends his career, the interest of the public and fans does not immediately switch to a new admirer. Boxers of the level of Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson or Floyd Mayweather Jr. live in the hearts of loyal fans for many years.

Very often, former superstars of the ring arrange so-called exhibition fights. As a rule, such events are held for charitable purposes, as a show, as well as for earnings. An exhibition fight can be from three to eight rounds. Moreover, not only boxers, but also representatives of any other popular sphere can be in the ring. For example, a famous boxer can come together in a confrontation with a famous blogger. In 2021, the undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr. fought the popular blogger Logan Paul, and in 2022, he fought the blogger Deji.

Bookmakers do not like such fights, as they do not declare winners, although some fights end in knockouts. The first exhibition match shown on television was held in 1931. In a 15-minute broadcast, former world lightweight champion Benny Leonard knocked out Golden Gloves champion Jimmy Martin in the third round. Although they were just supposed to "move".

By the way, the same Mayweather out of his five exhibition fights, three ended with knockouts. At the same time, initially the fighters wear large gloves to minimize injuries.

An exhibition fight can be with more than one opponent: in 1975, George Forman, while in Toronto, had five fights at once in one evening. Among his opponents were three boxers and a couple of football players. Oh, and then the poor fellows got it for the amusement of the crowd ...

The most famous exhibition fight between Muhammad Ali and Japanese wrestler Antonio Inoki is generally considered almost the predecessor of mixed martial arts.

And the battle between Mike Tyson and Roy Jones made such a sensation that modern fights for championship belts do not produce. The fighters covered the entire planned distance in eight rounds, and even though both were far from being in their best shape, the impressions of the return of legends were amazing.

I am already silent about the funds that are earned from such events.

For example, the fight between Ali and Inoki collected more than 2 million pay-per-view broadcasts, despite the fact that the show cost $10. At the Nippon Budokan arena itself, there was not a single empty seat, the cost of tickets started at $ 17, and ended with seats at the ring for $ 3 thousand per seat

People are always willing to pay to look at their idol of the past, even if he is not fighting at full strength.

For the most part, all boxers arrange such shows due to the fact that they begin to experience financial shocks. Such fights, of course, rarely cover their debts, because there are always promoters, managers, coaching staff, doctors behind the organization and a lot of other people who strive to pinch off a piece of the pie.

Sometimes it happens that fights, which were originally supposed to be exhibition, become professional in their organization. For example, YouTube blogger Jake Paul has already had seven fights according to the rules of boxing and won six, and ended four with knockouts. Among his opponents were not only bloggers, but also professional fighters: Ben Askren, twice Tyron Woodley and mixed martial arts legend Anderson Silva. So, in fact, his record is six wins and one loss. In his last boxing match, Paul lost on points to Briton Tommy Fury, who is the brother of world boxing champion Tyson Fury.

Absolutely all fights receive a license from the sports commission - in other words, all athletes undergo a special medical examination, which allows or not boxers to fight. Since it is not always possible for a professional athlete to fight in exhibitions, admission for health reasons plays a crucial role at such an event.

Russia also has a history of exhibition fights. At the beginning of the last century, the Kostroma nobleman, baron and a great lover of boxing and weight lifting, Mikhail Ottonovich Kister, held exhibitions in his own sports arena. He did this solely to popularize the sport, conducting three-round fights with local strongmen of that time. Such events were very popular among the people and already 100 years ago gathered crowds of onlookers.

And in the near future we will see an exhibition fight of the former professional mixed martial arts fighter Jeff Monson, who renounced his American citizenship and is now a deputy of the Council of the city district of Krasnogorsk. The match according to the rules of boxing will be held between him and the head of the Boxing Federation of Ingushetia, Lom-Ali Gazgiriev.

Exhibition fights do not lose their relevance to this day. Moreover, in the age of the development of social networks, people became interested not only in watching the fights of professional athletes, but also in watching the attempts of popular bloggers. Thus, the sport of the highest achievements becomes closer to the common people, repeating to us the popular motto of Soviet sports: "The main thing is not victory, but participation!"

The author's point of view may not coincide with the position of the editorial board.