Oscar De La Hoya, Turki Alalshikh Reveal More Info On Ring Magazine Purchase By Saudi Arabia

It was confirmed last week that the back-channel boxing media gossip was true and that Ring Magazine had indeed been sold to Saudi Arabia via their proxy, Turki Alalshikh, the Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority.

Now, drips and drabs of info are beginning to emerge regarding the sale and other matters regarding damage control after the sale (more on that in a bit).

In an oddly pro-Alalshikh/Saudi piece at Forbes.com, contributor Brian Mazique speaks of the sale as “wildly exciting for the sport” and opines that “perhaps the major push into the next generation has arrived.” (Btw, expect more of this deferential, “look at me, Turki” activity from media as people gravitate towards where the money gigs may be).

Mazique also quotes Ring Magazine’s previous owner Oscar De La Hoya in the article, pulling from the video interview he did with the Golden Boy Promotions owner and founder.

De La Hoya, who bought The Ring back in 2007 for a reported $7 million amid calls of conflict of interest, pretty much confirmed the rumor that he sold it to Turki & company for $10 million, also amid calls of conflict of interest.

If you’d like to hear more about why all of this– and especially the sale to the Saudis– is utter bullshit and, ultimately, harmful for the sport, click on the following links: Notes from the Boxing Underground: Ring Around The Saudis and Ring Magazine is Sold to the Saudis: Why it Happened and Why it Matters.

On the other hand, if you’re a boxing writer and want to give me grief over what I’ve written because “It’s not as bad as you say” with a follow-up of “it’s only boxing, anyway,” you can go rectally diddle yourself with a cattle prod.

Anyway, back to Oscar and his quotes.

“I did have some conversations with His Excellency,” De La Hoya said, regarding the sale. “As you know, he loves boxing. One of the staples of the sport is the publication called the Ring Magazine, which was established in 1920 [Editor’s Note: 1922]. Look, he obviously made the offer that we could not refuse. It was an asset that I held onto for many years. We were steadily holding on to it, keeping it alive. We switched it over to digital, which was a brilliant idea [Editor’s Note: They fully ‘switched over to digital’ because the print edition had to be nixed due to poor circulation] because we were getting traffic that was unheard of. [Editor’s Note: ‘Unheard of’ as in ‘Unheard of losses in traffic over the last couple years.’]

“I just thought one day, you know I think it’s time to release this asset, sell it and move on to other things [Editor’s Translation: ‘I was as happy as me in garters and fishnets to unload that mess.’]. The offer from Turki Alalshikh was an offer that I could not refuse. It’s in great hands. I strongly feel that Turki Alalshikh, because of his love of the sport is going to continue to grow the brand and make sure that the Ring Magazine continues to thrive, grow and to give fans the best content.”

On Monday, apparently responding to some of the criticism that comes when a media asset is acquired by an entity known as an enemy of free speech, with a reputation for murdering and imprisoning journalists, Turki Alalshikh issued a calming, cooling tweet. In it, he assured repeatedly, that The Ring will be “fully independent” and that, hey, look, we’re gonna have a “yearly extravagant awards ceremony!”

Earlier this week, I finalized a deal to acquire 100% of The Ring Magazine, and I want to make a few things clear, the print version of the magazine will return immediately after a two year hiatus, and it will be available in the US and UK markets. The magazine will be fully… pic.twitter.com/EwO4AWob0N

— TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) November 11, 2024

However, given the fact that Turki and his people just barred media members from press access to a Riyadh Season event for critical coverage, that “fully independent” assurance is somewhat comical in a nauseating kind of way.

We’ll probably never get a good accounting of how much Saudi/Turki influence is exerted on Ring Magazine staff and their rankings panel and how much staff and panel will be leaning towards Saudi interests for the sake of keeping their gigs. You probably won’t hear much about this from other media, either, as most will prefer to err on the side of not derailing a gravy train that may come around and pick them up at some point.

So, stay tuned to The Boxing Tribune for news and opinion sponsored by the fans and not industry influence peddlers.

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