The Hauser Report: A Club Fight Promoter Faces a Choice

Published

2 years ago

February 24, 2023

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On October 13, 2022, Larry Goldberg made his debut as a professional boxing promoter [https://tss.ib.tv/boxing/featured-boxing-articles-boxing-news-videos-rankings-and-results/74244-the-hauser-report-a-promoters-pro-debut]. Since then, he has promoted two more fight cards, the most recent being on Thursday, February 23. All three of Goldberg’s cards have been at Sony Hall in New York.

Each of Goldberg’s fights this past Thursday night was an A-side vs. B-side match-up with the A-side fighter winning as expected.

The opening bout – light-heavyweight Frederic Julan (12-2, 10 KOs) vs. Decarlo Perez (19-7, 6 KOs, 3 KOs by) – was dreadful. Julan (a southpaw) fought like he was in a sparring session. That was enough to earn a unanimous eight-round decision but not enough to give Goldberg a reason to put him on one of his shows again.

Next, former Mongolian Olympian Tsendbaatar Erdenebat (4-0, 2 KOs) demolished a game but over-matched Giovanni Gutierrez (11-3-1, 6 KOs, 2 KOs by) in a scheduled six-round lightweight bout that lasted until the 1:46 mark of round three when Gutierrez’s corner wisely stopped the carnage.

After that, Michael Hughes (3-1, 1 KO, 1 KO by) earned a unanimous decision over Nelson Morales (3-2) in a spirited encounter between two light-punching super-lightweights.

That was followed by a unanimous-decision triumph for Terrell Bostic (7-1, 1 KO) over Clay Burns (10-16-2, 4 KOs, 1 KO by) in a six-round lightweight bout. Burns has now lost ten of his last eleven fights (and the guy he beat has 38 losses). Here, it should be noted that multiple sources say one of Burns’s cornermen arrived at Sony Hall “under the influence” and that the New York State Athletic Commission barred him from Burns’s corner.

In the main event, 41-year-old Heather Hardy (23-2, 4 KOs) won an eight-round majority decision over Taynna Cardoso (5-1, 1 KO). The fight was originally scheduled as a super-featherweight bout. But Hardy (whose skills have diminished with age) was overweight early in the week and had to pay Cardoso $1,500 out of her purse to raise the contract weight to 135 pounds.

Now let’s cut to the chase.

It’s difficult for a promoter to make money on club fights in New York. So far, Goldberg hasn’t. Each of his shows to date has lost money. One reason for this is the high fixed costs of promoting in New York (venue, medical insurance, etc). He has also overpaid some fighters and incurred unnecessary expenses (for example, more airfare and hotels than should have been required) to bring boxers to New York as opponents for favored fighters. This is necessary (he’s told by mentors) because the favored fighters are ticket-sellers. Except most of the favored fighters haven’t sold many tickets.

That leads to Goldberg’s biggest problem. Revenue from ticket sales has fallen short of the mark.

Boxing at its best promises that, at any moment in a fight, the narrative can change. But this tension is absent from most A-side vs. B-side bouts.

In truth, too many of Goldberg’s fights haven’t been much fun to watch. So far, he has followed the common formula of A-side vs. B-side promotions. In his three fight cards to date, the A-side fighter has won fourteen of fifteen bouts. The exception was an inconsequential women’s fight on his second card.

Here’s a suggestion. It’s not rocket science. Goldberg should make good competitive fights. He needs an identity, a brand. And that brand should be entertaining club fights. His mantra should be, “It’s about the fights” – not “this guy is supposed to be a ticket seller” or “I’m doing a favor for this manager.”

It makes sense to accommodate exciting young prospects like Andy Dominguez (who fought on Goldberg’s first two fight cards). But as a fight fan, I’d rather see 7-9 vs. 8-10 in a competitive action fight than five one-sided bouts. People shouldn’t have to ask, “Who’s fighting tonight?” They should feel confident that, when they come to one of Goldberg’s shows, they’ll see competitive action fights.

To repeat: I’d rather see two guys with ordinary records square off in a heated brawl where each fighter has a chance to win than watch a procession of prospects steamroll a procession of no-hope opponents. And presumably, Goldberg’s B-side fighters would relish the opportunity to participate in fights where they have a realistic chance to win. They might even take less money to fight, giving Larry a chance to turn a profit.

Goldberg is passionate about boxing. Sony Hall has great ambiance. And there’s a need for good club fights in New York. Larry is now at a point where he has to establish an identity for his shows. He shouldn’t be in the business of trying to build champions. He’s in the business of promoting club fights. He should promote the most entertaining fights possible on a show-by-show basis.

Or he can keep promoting A-side vs. B-side fights and keep losing money. But if he goes down that road, boxing won’t be a business for him. It will be an expensive hobby.

* * *

The choice of Dmitry Bivol by the Boxing Writers Association of America as the 2022 “Fighter of the Year” is one more piece of evidence in support of the proposition that boxing is in decline in the United States.

From 1938 through 2004, only seven of sixty-seven “Fighter of the Year” honorees were foreign-born (Kid Gavilan, Ingemar Johansson, Dick Tiger, Ken Buchanan, Carlos Monzon, Julio Cesar Chavez, and Lennox Lewis). Three more (Emile Griffith, Carlos Ortiz, and Felix Trinidad) were born in U.S. territories.

These numbers evened even out from 2005 through 2015 when six of eleven honorees were foreign-born.

Now the pendulum has swung completely in the opposite direction Over the past seven years. Teofimo Lopez (2020) is the only American to be honored by the BWAA as its “Fighter of the Year.” Other winners during this time period include Bivol, Canelo Alvarez (twice), Carl Frampton, Vasiliy Lomachenko, and Oleksandr Usyk.

* * *

Boxing fans are used to hyperbole. But every now and then, someone makes a statement that’s so absurd that it cries out for rebuttal. Enter DAZN CEO Shay Segev.

DAZN’s boxing program has been a disappointment to fans and to DAZN itself. The network has lost more than five BILLION dollars over a three-year period. A large chunk of that is attributable to boxing.

DAZN is now planning to stream Anthony Joshua’s April 1 fight against Jermaine Franklin. In a February 6 press release, Segev was quoted as saying that Joshua-Franklin would be “the most eagerly anticipated fight of Anthony Joshua’s career.”

This begs the question: “More anticipated that Joshua-Klitschko? Joshua-Usyk I and II? Joshua-Ruiz II? Joshua-Whyte?”

I assume that Segev isn’t stupid. Becoming CEO of a major corporation requires a certain level of intelligence. But saying that Joshua-Franklin will be “the most eagerly anticipated fight of Anthony Joshua’s career” evinces either a total lack of understanding on Segev’s part of the business that he’s charged with overseeing or an embarrassing lack of candor.

* * *

It was a given that the pay-per-view numbers for Don King’s January 21 fight card headlined by Bermane Stiverne vs. Jonathan Guidry would be dismal. King styled the event at Casino Miami Jai Alai with the slogan “Let Freedom Ring.” But there was next-to-no pre-fight promotion and, in truth, little to promote.

The card was distributed by donking.com and FiteTV at a cost to buyers of $19.95. A reliable source says that there were “about four hundred buys.” That’s an embarrassingly low number.

So why does King, age 91, keep promoting?

Because of their breathing and circulation mechanisms, if some species of sharks stop swimming, they’ll die. Promoting is more than what Don King does. It’s who and what he is. It would be nice if he could end his promotional career on a high note. But as time goes by, that seems less and less likely to happen.

Thomas Hauser’s email address is thomashauserwriter@gmail.com. His most recent book – In the Inner Sanctum: Behind the Scenes at Big Fights – was published by the University of Arkansas Press. In 2004, the Boxing Writers Association of America honored Hauser with the Nat Fleischer Award for career excellence in boxing journalism. In 2019, Hauser was selected for boxing’s highest honor – induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

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Thomas Hauser

Thomas Hauser is the author of 52 books. In 2005, he was honored by the Boxing Writers Association of America, which bestowed the Nat Fleischer Award for career excellence in boxing journalism upon him. He was the first Internet writer ever to receive that award. In 2019, Hauser was chosen for boxing's highest honor: induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. Lennox Lewis has observed, “A hundred years from now, if people want to learn about boxing in this era, they’ll read Thomas Hauser.”

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Skylar Lacy Blocked for Lamar Jackson before Making his Mark in Boxing

Published

2 days ago

January 19, 2025

Arne K. Lang

Skylar-Lacy-Blocked-for-Lamar-Jackson-Before-Making-his-Mark-in-Boxing

Skylar Lacy, a six-foot-seven heavyweight, returns to the ring on Sunday, Feb. 2, opposing Brandon Moore on a card in Flint, Michigan, airing worldwide on DAZN.

As this is being written, the bookmakers hadn’t yet posted a line on the bout, but one couldn’t be accused of false coloring by calling the 10-round contest a 50/50 fight. And if his frustrating history is any guide, Lacy will have another draw appended to his record or come out on the wrong side of a split decision.

This should not be construed as a tip to wager on Moore. “Close fights just don’t seem to go my way,” says the boxer who played alongside future multi-year NFL MVP Lamar Jackson at the University of Louisville.

A 2021 National Golden Gloves champion, Skylar Lacy came up short in his final amateur bout, losing a split decision to future U.S. Olympian Joshua Edwards. His last Team Combat League assignment resulted in another loss by split decision and he was held to a draw in both instances when stepping up in class as a pro. “In my mind, I’m still undefeated,” says Lacy (8-0-2, 6 KOs). “No one has ever kicked my ass.”

Lacy was the B-side in both of those draws, the first coming in a 6-rounder against Top Rank fighter Antonio Mireles on a Top Rank show in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, and the second in an 8-rounder against George Arias, a Lou DiBella fighter on a DiBella-promoted card in Philadelphia.

Lacy had the Mireles fight in hand when he faded in the homestretch. The altitude was a factor. Lake Tahoe, Nevada (officially Stateline) sits 6,225 feet above sea level. The fight with Arias took an opposite tack. Lacy came on strong after a slow start to stave off defeat.

Skylar will be the B-side once again in Michigan. The card’s promoter, former world title challenger Dmitriy Salita, inked Brandon Moore (16-1, 10 KOs) in January. “A capable American heavyweight with charisma, athleticism and skills is rare in today’s day and age. Brandon has got all these ingredients…”, said Salita in the press release announcing the signing. (Salita has an option on Skylar Lacy’s next pro fight in the event that Skylar should win, but the promoter has a larger investment in Moore who was previously signed to Top Rank, a multi-fight deal that evaporated after only one fight.)

Both Lacy and Moore excelled in other sports. The six-foot-six Moore was an outstanding basketball player in high school in Fort Lauderdale and at the NAIA level in college. Lacy was an all-state football lineman in Indiana before going on to the University of Louisville where he started as an offensive guard as a redshirt sophomore, blocking for freshman phenom Lamar Jackson. “Lamar was hard-working and humble,” says Lacy about the player who is now one of the world’s highest-paid professional athletes.

When Lacy committed to Louisville, the head coach was Charlie Strong who went on to become the head coach at the University of Texas. Lacy was never comfortable with Strong’s successor Bobby Petrino and transferred to San Jose State. Having earned his degree in only three years (a BA in communications) he was eligible immediately but never played a down because of injuries.

Returning to Indianapolis where he was raised by his truck dispatcher father, a single parent, Lacy gravitated to Pat McPherson’s IBG (Indy Boxing and Grappling) Gym on the city’s east side where he was the rare college graduate pounding the bags alongside at-risk kids from the city’s poorer neighborhoods.

Lacy built a 12-6 record across his two seasons in Team Combat League while representing the Las Vegas Hustle (2023) and the Boston Butchers (2024).

For the uninitiated, a Team Combat League (TCL) event typically consists of 24 fights, each consisting of one three-minute round. The concept finds no favor with traditionalists, but Lacy is a fan. It’s an incentive for professional boxers to keep in shape between bouts without disturbing their professional record and, notes Lacy, it’s useful in exposing a competitor to different styles.

“It paid the bills and kept me from just sitting around the house,” says Lacy whose 12-6 record was forged against 13 different opponents.

As a sparring partner, Lacy has shared the ring with some of the top heavyweights of his generation, e.g., Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte. He was one of Fury’s regular sparring partners during the Gypsy King’s trilogy with Deontay Wilder. He worked with Joshua at Derrick James’ gym in Dallas and at Ben Davison’s gym in England, helping Joshua prepare for his date in Saudi Arabia with Francis Ngannou and had previously sparred with Ngannou at the UFC Performance Center in Las Vegas. Skylar names traveling to new places as one of his hobbies and he got to scratch that itch when he joined Whyte’s camp in Portugal.

As to the hardest puncher he ever faced, he has no hesitation: “Ngannou,” he says. “I negotiated a nice price to spend a week in his camp and the first time he hit me I knew I should have asked for more.”

Lacy is confident that having shared the ring with some of the sport’s elite heavyweights will get him over the hump in what will be his first 10-rounder (Brandon Moore has never had to fight beyond eight rounds, having won his three 10-rounders inside the distance). Lacy vs. Moore is the co-feature to Claressa Shields’ homecoming fight with Danielle Perkins. Shields, basking in the favorable reviews accorded the big-screen biopic based on her first Olympic journey (“The Fire Inside”) will attempt to capture a title in yet another weight class at the expense of the 42-year-old Perkins, a former professional basketball player.

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Mizuki Hiruta Dominates in her U.S. Debut and Omar Trinidad Wins Too at Commerce

Published

4 days ago

January 18, 2025

David A. Avila

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Japan’s Mizuki Hiruta smashed through Mexico’s Maribel Ramirez with ease in winning by technical decision and local hero Omar Trinidad continued his assault on the featherweight division on Friday.

Hiruta (7-0, 2 KOs), who prefers to be called “Mimi,” made her American debut with an impressive performance against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez (15-11-4) and retained the WBO super flyweight world title by unanimous decision at Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.

The pink-haired Japanese southpaw champion quickly proved to be quicker, stronger and even better than advertised. In the opening round Ramirez landed on the floor twice after throwing errant blows. On one instance, it could have been ruled a knockdown but it was not a convincing blow.

In the second round, Ramirez again attacked and again was met with a Hiruta check right hook and down went the Mexican. This time referee Ray Corona gave the eight-count and the fight resumed.

It was Hiruta’s third title defense but this time it was on American soil. She seemed nervous by the prospect of getting a favorable review from the more than 700 fans inside the casino tent.

For more than a year Hiruta has been training off and on with Manny Robles in the L.A. area. Now that she has a visa, she has spent considerable time this year learning the tricks of the trade. They proved explosively effective.

Though Mexico City’s Ramirez has considerable experience against world champions, she discovered that Hiruta was not easy to hit. Often, the Japanese champion would slip and counter with precision.

It was an impressive American debut, though the fight was stopped in the eighth round after a collision of heads. The scores were tallied and all three saw Hiruta the winner by scores of 80-71 twice and 79-72.

“I’m so happy. I could have done much more,” said Hiruta through interpreter Yuriko Miyata. “I wanted to do more things that Manny Robles taught me.”

Trinidad Wins Too

Omar Trinidad (18-0-1, 13 KOs) discovered that challenger Mike Plania (31-5, 18 KOs) has a very good chin and staying power. But over 10 rounds Trinidad proved to be too fast and too busy for the Filipino challenger.

Immediately it was evident that the East L.A. featherweight was too quick and too busy for Plania who preferred a counter-puncher attack that never worked.

“He was strong,” said Trinidad. “He took everything.”

After 10 redundant rounds all three judges scored for Trinidad 100-90 twice and 99-91. He retains the WBC Continental Americas title.

Other Bouts

Ali Akhmedov (23-1, 17 KOs) blasted out Malcolm Jones (17-5-1) in less than two rounds. A dozen punches by Akhmedov forced referee Thomas Taylor to stop the super middleweight fight.

Iyana “Roxy” Verduzco (3-0) bloodied Lindsey Ellis in the first round and continued the speedy assault in the next two rounds. Referee Ray Corona saw enough and stopped the fight in favor of Verduzco at 1:34 of the third round.

Gloria Munguilla (7-1) and Brook Sibrian (5-2) lit up the boxing ring with a nonstop clash for eight rounds in their light flyweight fight. Munguilla proved effective with a slip-and-counter attack. Sibrian adjusted and made the fight closer in the last four rounds but all three judges favored Munguilla.

More Winners

Joshua Anton, Tayden Beltran, Adan Palma, and Alexander Gueche all won their bouts.

Photos credit: Al Applerose

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More

Published

5 days ago

January 16, 2025

David A. Avila

Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More

Best wishes to the survivors of the Los Angeles wildfires that took place last week and are still ongoing in small locales.

Most of the heavy damage took place in the western part of L.A. near the ocean due to Santa Ana winds. Another very hot spot was in Altadena just north of the Rose Bowl. It was a horrific tragedy.

Hopefully the worst is over.

Pro boxing returns with 360 Boxing Promotions spotlighting East L.A.’s Omar Trinidad (17-0-1, 13 KOs) defending a regional featherweight title against Mike Plania (31-4, 18 KOs) on Friday, Jan. 17, at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.

“I’m the king of L.A. boxing and I’ll be ready to put on a show headlining again in the main event. This is my year, I’m ready to challenge and defeat any of the featherweight world champions,” said Trinidad.

UFC Fight Pass will stream the Hollywood Night fight card that includes a female world championship fight and other intriguing match-ups.

Tom Loeffler heads 360 Promotions and once again comes full force with a hot prospect in Trinidad. If you’re not familiar with Loeffler’s history of success, he introduced America to Oleksandr Usyk, Gennady “GGG” Golovkin and the brothers Wladimir and Vitaly Kltischko.

“We’ve got a wealth of international talent and local favorites to kick off our 2025 in grand style,” said Loeffler.

He knows talent.

Trinidad hails from the Boyle Heights area of East L.A. near the Los Angeles riverbed. Several fighters from the past came from that exact area including the first Golden Boy, Art Aragon.

Aragon was a huge gate attraction during the late 1940s until 1960. He was known as a lady’s man and dated several Hollywood starlets in his time. Though he never won a world title he did fight world champions Carmen Basilio, Jimmy Carter and Lauro Salas. He was more or less the king of the Olympic Auditorium and Los Angeles boxing during his career.

Other famous boxers from the Boyle Heights area were notorious gangster Mickey Cohen and former world champion Joey Olivo.

Can Trinidad reach world title status?

Facing Trinidad will be Filipino fighter Plania who’s knocked off a couple of prospects during his career including Joshua “Don’t Blink” Greer and Giovanni Gutierrez. The fighter from General Santos in the Philippines can crack and hold his own in the boxing ring.

It’s a very strong fight card and includes WBO world titlist Mizuki Hiruta of Japan who defends the super flyweight title against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez. It’s a tough matchup for Hiruta who makes her American debut. You can’t miss her with that pink hair and she has all the physical tools to make a splash in this country.

Mizukii Hiruta

Two other female bouts are also planned, including light flyweight banger L.A.’s Gloria Munguilla (6-1) against Coachella’s Brook Sibrian (5-1) in a match set for six rounds. Both are talented fighters. Another female fight includes super featherweights Iyana “Right Hook Roxy” Verduzco (2-0) versus Lindsey Ellis (2-1) in another six-rounder. Ellis can crack with all her wins coming via knockout. Verduzco is a multi-national titlist as an amateur.

Others scheduled to perform are Ali Akhmedov, Joshua Anton, Adan Palma and more.

Doors open at 4:30 p.m.

Boxing and the Media

The sport of professional boxing is currently in flux. It’s always in flux but no matter what people may say or write, boxing will survive.

Whether you like Jake Paul or not, he proved boxing has worldwide appeal with monstrous success in his last show. He has media companies looking at the numbers and imagining what they can do with the sport.

Sure, UFC is negotiating a massive billion dollar deal with media companies, as is WWE, both are very similar in that they provide combat entertainment. You don’t need to know the champions because they really don’t matter. Its about the attractions.

Boxing is different. The good champions last and build a following that endures even beyond their careers a la Mike Tyson.

MMA can’t provide that longevity, but it does provide entertainment.

Currently, there is talk of establishing a boxing league again. It’s been done over and over but we shall see if it sticks this time.

Pro boxing is the true warrior’s path and that means a solo adventure. It’s a one-on-one sport and that appeals to people everywhere. It’s the oldest sport that can be traced to prehistoric times. You don’t need classes in Brazilian Jiujitsu, judo, kick boxing or wrestling. Just show up in a boxing gym and they can put you to work.

It’s a poor person’s path that can lead to better things and most importantly discipline.

Photos credit: Lina Baker

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