As virtual reality continues to make a larger impact on the sports world, particularly with how we watch, it is appropriate that another milestone will occur tonight, in the sport of boxing.
David Haye is set to make boxing history after he announced that he will be heavily involved in the world’s first boxing broadcast that viewers will be able to see through virtual reality. It will be broadcast in fully immersive 360 degree video and will give fans views from the match as if they had a ringside seat.
We wrote last week on how we got to watch an NBA game in virtual reality, and the results were nothing short of astonishing. It can be anticipated that the boxing experience will provide similar results.
The way this came about is Hate teamed up with the producers of IM360 and created a custom designed virtual reality app that will work with virtual reality headsets as well as google cardboard. Since it will be available to fans relatively inexpensively, Haye hopes it can connect and bring in a whole new set of boxing fans with the unparalleled experience through VR.
“I’m fascinated by new emerging technologies, and am constantly looking to embrace the digital world in order to connect with my fans. With this in mind, I’m thrilled to bring immersive VR technology to big time boxing – allowing the public to stand alongside me in the ring, letting them see what I see and experience every punch,” said David Haye.
Due to boxing’s violent nature, fans won’t be able to be in the ring and really see the true impact of every punch, but it will enable them to see unprecedented views of the pre-fight entrances as well as seeing the fighters from right outside the ring like they had one of the best seats in the arena.
While wearing a virtual reality headset can be something to get used to, it can give fans views of sports they would have never received without very expensive, often unavailable, tickets. Let alone sometimes views that can’t even be achieved through any ticketed experience in the arena. This makes the added effort worth it in the long run, to either see a sport you are a major fan of in a brand new way or to learn a new sport through enhanced viewpoints.
Andrew Salter, co-CEO of Salter Brothers Entertainment told International Business times:
“Virtual reality technologies and immersive experiences are at the heart of this next wave of digital evolution. As a company, we are dedicated to creating new ways of making live sports and entertainment more exciting and engaging,”.
To watch the fight, fans can download the app from the Google Play Store with the fight between David Haye and Mark di Mori scheduled at the O2 Arena in London tonight at 9.00pm GMT.