Turki Alalshikh is changing the game right now when it comes to boxing, but what it is like to work for him?
The Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority is the brains behind Riyadh Season and the steady stream of megafights currently making fight fans very very happy people.
That Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford blockbuster in Las Vegas last Saturday night was just the latest example – the latest of many, including a pair of undisputed world heavyweight title fights (Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk in 2025 and Usyk vs Daniel Dubois in 2025).
The massive sums of money being pumped into the sport by the Saudis have revolutionised a frustrating political landscape where too often the best would not fight the best.
One man who has been at the forefront of the Riyadh Season rise, working closely with Alalshikh, is Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn.
It’s a wild ride – Eddie Hearn
Hearn went deep this week on working with the GEA chief as he spoke to Ariel Helwani, admitting: “Working with Turki Alalshikh is a wild ride”.
He added: “I’m just being straight, he doesn’t really allow you to do what you want to do. He does what he wants to do and you follow. I’ve learned over the years of working with him, your advice mainly falls on deaf ears, but I’ve also learned that he’s definitely not an idiot. He’s a very smart guy, and there’s a method to the madness.”
“The traditional ways of going on sale through tickets or announcing a press conference or even announcing a fight is just not the traditional way with him.”
Hearn and fellow British promotional giant Frank Warren have worked seamlessly with Alalshikh on bringing the biggest fights to reality, but what about UFC boss Dana White, who was part of the Canelo vs Crawford show masterminded by TKO? Hearn believes there may be trouble ahead.
“I think they’re gonna clash, but money’s money, isn’t it? It depends if you’re prepared to keep your mouth quiet and do as you’re told. I am. Are they? That’s the difference for me.”
