Floyd Mayweather misses his chance to end the circus by taking Logan Paul the distance

It was the hardcore boxing fans who felt out of pocket after Sunday night’s eight-round contest, writes Jack Rathborn

By merely surviving, Paul has surely opened the door to others (AP)

Floyd Mayweather Jr described his exhibition bout against YouTube star Logan Paul as “legalised bank robbery”, and yet it was the hardcore boxing fans who felt out of pocket after Sunday night’s eight-round contest.

Paul, a former college wrestler, admitted he “won” by avoiding a knockout in eight, energy-sapping rounds against the legendary boxer.

In an attempt to maximise his official 34.5-pound weight advantage, Paul attempted to overwhelm the former five-weight world champion. Despite lacking accuracy with his punches, Paul (and the accompanying circus) now looks primed to continue for a considerable time yet after this performance, which was built on size and stamina.

Certainly his brother, Jake, will continue to pursue his professional career inside the ring, with former UFC champion Tyron Woodley up next later this summer.

But by merely surviving, Paul has surely opened the door to others – to the dismay of many. The bubble has certainly not burst; and while the riches acquired by Mayweather and Paul may be out of reach for most, we have seen the desperation from legendary fighters such as Mike Tyson and Oscar De La Hoya to dust the gloves off once more in pursuit of a payday, posing the question: where will it end? The fear is that one day a novice will be seriously hurt or worse.

But the numbers will continue to attract broadcasters, in this instance America’s Showtime and British outlet Sky Sports. The latter’s position within the sport in the UK is now fascinating. The broadcaster recently caused uproar by shunning the opportunity to provide coverage of Josh Taylor’s recent undisputed world title win against Jose Ramirez.

Despite Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom switching allegiance to DAZN, Sky Sports still has the model to host enormous pay-per-view events such as Mayweather vs Paul.

The future of the sport is therefore murky, in part thanks to a 44-year-old Mayweather and his inability, or lack of desire, to punish Paul’s mistakes and expose his lack of expertise between the ropes.

A fissure has clearly widened, with the pinnacle of a proud, illustrious sport on one side and the bizarre interpretation involving celebrities on the other. Quite where it all ends is anybody’s guess, but last night proved it is here to stay.

Yours,

Jack Rathborn

Assistant sports editor