This year, Don King will turn 80. Listening to him speak and promote Saturday's light welterweight unification bout between WBC champ Devon Alexander and WBO title holder Timothy Bradley (live on HBO at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT), he still has the same energy and vigor as he did when he was promoting the "Rumble in the Jungle" or other historic fights he masterminded.
No, retirement does not seem to be in his vocabulary, and he seems extra excited by having two undefeated American fighters meeting in the ring. This is a fight he is hoping will re-energize boxing and city of Detroit as well.
“Excited? That’s an understatement!” King shouted. “I’m electrified! I’m ready! I’m excited! It’s going to be a great, great show on the 29th. Two undefeated champions meet each other. It’s a must-see fight because of the combatants that are fighting. These guys are people’s champions. They are undefeated. They have been fighting and trying to win the fame and the acclaim of their communities. One now will reach out and broaden that effect globally.”
King believes, as many do, that the winner of this fight in the Silverdome at Pontiac, Mich., has a grand opportunity to be one of boxing’s next big stars. He has brought up names like Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather, currently the sport’s two most recognizable names, as possible next opponents for the winner.
Bradley, a California native ,and Alexander, from a rough and tumble part of St. Louis, have had their share of challenges to get to this point. King says it is young men like these two, who have fought off the temptation of street life, from drugs to gangs and other vices, who have the backgrounds as well as the talent to bring boxing back into the mainstream.
“This is the type of fight that puts the glory back into boxing, recapturing the glory of yesteryear and bringing it forward to today," King said. "I think that boxing is in a lull only because it doesn’t have heroes. You have to have heroes, and this is what makes heroes when you get an opportunity for a fight like this here that will make a hero. They’ll be glorified, and everybody will get the opportunity to feel good again about boxing.”
There are a number of young stars to go with the Mayweathers and Pacquiaos who are creating a buzz around boxing. King believes the sport is on the verge of a surge, and he does not believe the recent rise of mixed martial arts will have any effect. In fact, King says he enjoys MMA, calling it “raw, sophisticated barbarism.”
In regards to the venue, this promoter could also be a history teacher. What better place for a fight, he says, than the birthplace of automobiles, a place known for Motown and for as its boxing past.
To sum it up, if Detroit needs energy and boxing needs energy, Don King, even nearing 80 years old, has enough for both.
“We’re going to be in the Silverdome, in Pontiac, Mich. Bring it back alive!" he said. "Let everybody know that Detroit is alive and kicking and you’re going to have the clash of two titans, Devon Alexander and Timothy Bradley bring the people together!”
