After the May 2 and 3 Riyadh Season shows, what happened on May 4, when Naoya Inoue and Ramon Cardenas fought on a Top Rank card, many have been left questioning: what’s the point of paying out enormous purses when all that fighters succeed in producing are dull, sluggish fights? Interestingly, aside from fans and pundits, even some fighters seem to have raised similar concerns. Rolando Romero is one among them.

For all the criticism leveled against the Times Square event, Rolando Romero’s victory over Ryan Garcia shone brightly. No one expected it, for one. Especially with Garcia, who claimed to have received a $20 million purse, many expected him to roll over Rolly Romero in his comeback fight. So while interacting with a posse of media, Romero suggested it’s high time boxing started following better examples. Fighter payouts should be commensurate with performance and not with mere hype or name.

Rolando Romero: Let’s make boxing great again

So one reporter asked, “Canelo, Ryan Garcia, Devin Haney are all kind of flat. What do you make of that?” They were obviously hinting at the way the headline and co-main event at Times Square and the headline in Riyadh unfolded. Both Haney and Canelo emerged winners. But the number of jibes they received probably gave tough competition to the ones lunged at the defeated Garcia.

With Canelo topping the chart, most took home hefty payouts. So Rolando Romero minced no words. He said, “Look, it comes down to this, right? I’m tired of people, and like I said, this is coming from a fighter, but you guys shouldn’t be overpaying fighters.” Why?

Because if the fighters have a string of matchups lined up, then they often turn complacent and perform poorly. They’re fully aware that their bank account will be duly credited with the guarantee. ‘It’s sad because it’s taking away, like, oh, all I got to do is f**king survive this fight for your next paycheck. And it’s been going on for a very long time, and it’s really messing up the sport,” Romero stressed. So what’s the solution?

“You guys got to do it like the UFC does,” Romero asserted. He added, “Like you do a sh*t performance, f**k y’all. Y’all ain’t getting no damn money. Like, and that’s why it’s taking away the hunger of these fighters, where it’s like, well, they got a guaranteed check next. That’s why all these motherf**kers keep protecting their O.”

A rising source of conflict

Romero highlighted how, despite suffering two defeats, he showed courage to come back and put his career on track. Whereas others just want to protect their unbeaten record and fight big money tickets. “I fight for belts; I fight for legacy. These guys, these guys, they all, they all only fight for money, and it’s and it’s sad, and it’s destroying the sport,” he concluded.

Hefty payments inconsistent with subpar performance have been a recurring theme. In the current landscape, it gained currency when some fighters, the ones occupying the top slot, often waited and watched till things turned favorable, especially in terms of money.

Quite a few fans were shocked when details of Canelo’s payout for the William Scull fight emerged. Likewise, the feelings didn’t subside when updates, though still not confirmed, about the upcoming showdown with Terence Crawford started gaining traction.

For the fighters who perform exceptionally on the fight night, UFC has the concept of the ‘Performance of the Night’ (POTN) bonus. So is it high time boxing started incorporating such measures to elevate the events?

What about you? Do you think the payment vs. performance issue will become a major narrative in the days to come?