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Yep, this is the world we live in, where social media influencers from TikTok and YouTube kick the baloney out of each other in what’s being called the ‘Battle of the Platforms’.

I don’t know who to judge more, the content creators or the audience who will happily buy into this kind of thing.

Of course, none other than Logan Paul is heavily invested in this wannabe-gladiator event, directly involved in organising the whole thing that will feature other internet celebrities like Austin McBroom, founder of the ACE Family, and Bryce Hall fighting each other.

Additional matches will also feature Danny Duncan, DDG, Deji, FaZe Jarvis, Tanner Fox from YouTube, and then Michael Le, Nate Wyatt, Tayler Holder and Vinnie Hacker from TikTok.

There will also be musical performances from DJ Khaled and Migos.

The press release describes the event as a “Gatsby-esque over-the-top production boxing competition” but VICE has another perspective:

Celebrity boxing has long been the tacky last refuge for stars whose relevance is fading.

It became such a running joke that the tendency for celebrities to try their hand at gimmick-y boxing matches is the entire basis of the MTV claymation parody show Celebrity Death Match.

Logan Paul has capitalised on this kind of event before when he took to the ring with YouTuber KSI in 2018.

It’s easy to hate on Paul as he has become notorious for his awful PR stunts, like tasering dead rats, so seeing him get a fist to the face can be somewhat satisfying:

Executive producer Paul Cazers, who also organized Paul’s fight with KSI, says in this press release that they are anticipating this event to be “the largest PPV event in history,” citing Paul’s fight with KSI as the model that this event is trying to follow.

“There we saw that the rabid international fan base of these social media moguls drove more audience and sales than traditional legacy professional athletic events,” Cazers said.

The trailer, if you must:

Unfortunately, it is not entirely crazy to see the internet, yet again, willingly embrace tackiness and spectacle at the expense of others.

The battle will commence on June 12 at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.

[source:vice]