Badou Jack in Dubai

It’s been 22 years since the first professional boxing event impacted the UAE.

It was at the Aviation Club Tennis Centre (now the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium) when ex-super middleweight champion Chris Eubank knocked out unheralded Colombian Camilo Alarcon in the fourth round – claiming the final victory of his boxing career.

But while Eubank has remained a frequent visitor to the UAE since, professional boxing has not.

Despite a lack of pro events, Dubai and Abu Dhabi have been mentioned frequently as destinations for high-profile fights, with the likes of Amir Khan and Manny Pacquiao notably angling to box in the Emirates.

Time after time, however, boxing fans have been left disappointed.

That could be about to change.

Former two-division world champion Badou Jack has found himself increasingly at home in the UAE, regularly spending downtime there between fights.

The Swedish-born, Las Vegas-based fighter was even a guest of honour at the 2018 Dubai Fitness Challenge.

Now, Jack and his business manager Amer Abdallah – a Bronx native and former kickboxing world champion – are aiming to ignite a boxing spark in the region.

The first ever event held under the newly created Badou Jack Promotions lands at the FIVE Palm Jumeirah Hotel on May 3 and Abdallah feels it could be a springboard for Middle East boxing.

A burgeoning boxing scene already exists in the UAE thanks to dedicated gyms like Round 10 and Real Boxing Only, though genuine exposure has been difficult to come by. In contrast, Jack and Abdallah’s event is set to be streamed live on Fight.tv, reaching 175 countries worldwide.