The Middle East Professional Boxing (MEPB) commission has become a pivotal group working behind the scenes to support efforts by Saudi Arabia (Riyadh) and United Arab Emirates (Dubai and Abu Dhabi) to successfully challenge Las Vegas and New York City as premier hubs for the “Sweet Science”.
In addition to hosting some of the most popular and lucrative pay-per-view boxing events during the past few years, the Middle East is rapidly developing Arab boxing talent towards its ultimate quest to eventually crown the first Arab professional boxing champion of the world.
Under the leadership of Jose Mohan, MEPB is playing a critical role in support of the Middle East’s development as the new and future face of professional boxing.
“We are incredibly proud of several achievements including our position as the main commission for an historic moment, the undisputed heavyweight title (Oleksandr Usyk vs. Tyson Fury) fight in Riyadh, the biggest fight of this century,” Mr. Mohan said. “We’ve now sanctioned more than 100 shows to demonstrate our rapid growth and impact in the region to become the first regional organization to sanction shows independently, eliminating the need for foreign commissions. We’re also proud to have played a key role in commissioning major events like the Anthony Joshua vs. Oleksandr Usyk and Jake Paul vs. Tommy Fury fights.”
Fury vs. Usyk Weigh-In – Oleksandr Usyk is on the scale. Jose Mohan (dark suit) is standing in the front row to the far right.
(photo courtesy of Seddiqi Boxing)
Mohan noted that there are several factors contributing to boxing’s rising popularity in the Middle East, attributing its incredible success to foresight, anticipating boxing’s eventual rise in the region, albeit not necessarily on the current grand scale seen in Saudi Arabia, which has hosted several of the most lucrative and popular events in the world the past few years.
There were several boxing promoters in the region the past five or six years paving the path for boxing and then MEPB started commissioning fights, including world title bouts and regional championships, which helped establish its credibility and expertise. Government initiatives, particularly Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and UAE’s focus on sports, have used boxing as a dramatically successful instrument for development and this has fairly worked well.”
Boxing was relatively unknown in the region, but MEPB has worked extremely hard to change that, investing millions of dollars, commissioning more than 100 shows and 10 years of persistent effort to reach its current level.
“MEPB’s creation was driven by necessity,” Mohan explained. “The region lacked a local boxing commission, hindering event organization and fighter participation. We addressed this by bringing in experts to train our local team, and investing significant time, effort, and finances. We have persevered through more than 100 shows over a decade and this journey required patience and strong financial backing. While we’ve made great strides, we continue to learn and improve. Our story exemplifies how we identified a critical need in the region’s boxing scene and worked tirelessly to fill it, establishing MEPB as a cornerstone for Middle Eastern boxing
“We’re confident that the growth of boxing in the Middle East will continue to accelerate. This growth is manifesting in two distinct but complementary ways: in Saudi Arabia, we’re seeing the hosting of super fights – major international boxing events that attract global attention; in Abu Dhabi, though, there’s a focus on building grassroots boxing programs, which are crucial for developing local talent and creating a sustainable boxing ecosystem.”
In addition to branding the Middle East as an ascending power in boxing, MEPB is also heavily involved in the Rising Stars series that shines the spotlight on rapidly developing Arab boxers. The Rising Stars platform plays a crucial role in the growth of boxing throughout the region. While Saudi Arabia is hosting high-profile super fights with international stars, MEPB recognizes that these fighters will eventually retire and that it’s essential to develop the next generation of boxing talent, focusing on developing talent from the Middle East, North Africa, India, Pakistan, and Iran. Rising Stars aims to create global prospects, not only regional ones.
“The goal is to see Arab boxers headlining main events in Arabic countries,” Mohan added. “With 500 million people in the Middle East and North Africa, we believe one star could gain millions of supporters. Rising Stars is part of (series promoter) Ahmed Seddiqi’s vision to see an Arab champion, supported by Abu Dhabi tourism.
“As a commission, we strongly support initiatives that focus on local talent and grassroots development. We endorse promotions that share our vision of growing the sport and developing fighters from the region. Their success is commendable and contributes significantly to our overall mission of elevating boxing in the Middle East.”
MEPB’s short-term goals include strengthening the ecosystem with additional trained ring doctors and officials, generating awareness about the sport, and encouraging more kids to take up boxing professionally or for fitness. Long-term, MEPB wants more regional promoters who understand the sport and also how the business works, more managers coming out of the region, and better coaches training fighters. MEPB will also educate people about boxing safety and produce world-class referees, judges, and global promoters from the region. Ultimately, its goal is to crown the first Arab world champion.
“Our ultimate target is to have an Arab world champion,” Mohan concluded, “It’s the reason for the investments in super fights in Saudi Arabia and grassroots boxing in Abu Dhabi. At the end of the day, we want to see a champion coming out of the Arab region. This is the goal of MEPB and promoters. We have a realistic 3 to 5-year plan to achieve this. We are very confident that whatever we see happening in the region will actually turn into a reality.
“We’re already seeing promising signs of progress towards our ultimate goal. Several Arab boxers — Moroccan super featherweight Moussa Gholam (22-1, 13 KOs), Jordanian lightweight Bader Al-Dherat (11-0, 8 KOs), UAE super flyweight Sultan Al Nuaimi (11-0, 7 KOs) and super featherweight Fahad Al Bloushi (15-1, 3 KOs) — are on the verge of breaking into the top 15 rankings of major sanctioning bodies, which is a significant milestone that demonstrates the rising quality of our regional talent. We’re getting closer to the day when a regional talent will headline a major event in a stadium in Riyadh or Abu Dhabi. This prospect is not just exciting but also represents the realization of our long-term vision.”
Boxing is rapidly changing for the better; the Middle East Professional Boxing commission is playing a significant role.
