As far as Turki Alalshikh is concerned, the boxing boom in Saudi Arabia won’t involve dabblers of The Sweet Science.

The head of the General Entertainment Authority, the arm that oversees entertainment in the oil-producing country, has asserted himself as one of the top powerbrokers in boxing, financing matchups that likely could not have materialized under the usual economics and business alignments of the sport.  

In recent months, under Alalshikh’s helm, Saudi Arabia has hosted a series of high-profile fights. Next month, the country will host the undisputed heavyweight championship between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk, followed by a “crossover” fight between Anthony Joshua and former UFC champion Francis Ngannou, who has seen his stock rise since he lost a controversial decision to Fury in October, which also took place in Saudi Arabia.

In a recent interview with DAZN, Alalshikh made it clear he has no desire to stretch his ambition to include financing matchups involving social media influencers.

“We don’t want any YouTuber fight again,” Alalshikh said.

“I don’t talk about names,” Alalshikh continued, when asked if the likes of KSI would not receive an invitation to fight in Saudi Arabia. “I want fighters. I want fighters. This is what I support. Maybe another section in GEA will do something like this for the fans to make them happy, OK.

“But me? Inside my heart I want to see the fighters. I want to see the fighters.”

Alalshikh’s favorite fighters perhaps speak to his preference for the kind of prizefighting he wants to see take place in his own country: Larry Holmes and Roberto Duran.  

When asked if Muhammad Ali, Manny Pacquiao, or Mike Tyson, counted among his favorite boxers, Alalshikh demurred politely.

Of Floyd Mayweather, Alalshikh simply said, “Of course no.”

Neither Lennox Lewis, Sugar Ray Leonard, nor Evander Holyfield made the cut, although Alalshikh said he considered those fighters “brothers.”

In terms of the contemporary scene, Alalshikh has his eyes set on making the undisputed light heavyweight championship between Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev later this summer.

Sean Nam is the author of .