See this is the type of defensiveness (Joe Rogan style) which I think takes away from the credibility of the sport. Btw, the responses aren't surprising as I know how big MMA is on bodybuilding boards.
seriously though..how can you ask what I am talking about? We aren't just talking some big fights - ANY of the headline fighters in boxing will make more than any MMA figher. Hell, even Amir Khan is a multi millionaire and he's already lost. Beating an over the hill Barrera is his only notable victory. If Mayweather and Pacquiao fight they will each make over 100 times more than any MMA fighter ever has in a fight. Anyone who says the interest is not there in boxing is having a laugh and ends up sounding stupid ala Joe Rogan.
The training is more brutal? It is just as tough, but in different ways. A MMA fighter would struggle with boxing training and vice versa. I've done both (boxing a couple of times a week and MMA slightly less regularly) and I find hitting the heavy bag the hardest of all. Grappling is tiring and requires a different sort of strength but is nowhere near as cardio intensive. MMA fighters obviously have to incorporate more weightlifting into their training but then don't have to run the distances that boxers do. Boxers (besides heavy weights) do a lot more body weight work to keep the speed that MMA fighters lose by training to grapple. It's just different. To say is is tougher is just ignorant. To be the best in either sport takes ridiculous amounts of work and pain.
The amount of belts in boxing has I agree been a farce at times but in ways can also make things more exciting in my opinion. It means so much more when a boxer unifies the division. Also, the super six tournaments are proving very successful for those who have the need to know for certain who is THE best. Again, this is partly for ignorant fans because styles make fights and sometimes there is no 'best'. Only rarely do you have real stand out fighters like Pacquaio and Mayweather. I know what you're saying but for me, the controversy of boxing and the setting up of fights makes it MORE interesting than having one company dominating an industry rolling out event one hundred and something after the other.
I forgot to mention in my original post. The main man behind UFC Dana White is a disgrace to his own sport - obviously a very good business man to have marketed UFC (mostly to people who share his type of personality) but the way he speaks on the internet to journalists and the like hasn't done the sport any favours in my opinion.