Boxing : It’s as Busy as a Three-Ring Circus

A year ago, you couldn’t even find a pulse. One promoter, somewhat poorer than when he began, said that to continue to promote boxing locally was only slightly worse judgment than to begin it in the first place.

But boxing is up and around, especially here in Los Angeles. Its death, it turns out, was greatly exaggerated. As Jimmy Gilio, promoter/matchmaker, says, “All I know is, people are making money.”

That’s pretty much how you tell. Gilio, with the backing of Rogelio Robles, has been satisfying the Mexican crowd with its heroes at the Sports Arena and, lately, at the Olympic Auditorium. He did $112,000 in business for a show at the Sports Arena and did other shows that accounted for gates of $80,000 and $90,000.

In Reseda, at the Country Club, actor Victor French, the promoter of record after the death of Al Goossen, has been selling out with fighters from the Goossen stable. The last three shows there have been to standing-room-only crowds.

And in Irvine, at the Marriott, Don Fraser has been selling out the room, using mainly Orange County prospects, with an occasional name fighter.

How to account for this comeback?

“The quality of fights has come up,” says Gilio, who has been serving up a stable of Mexican attractions, often in fights with each other. “You’ve got to give my crowd, the Mexicans, war every time. If you don’t, they don’t come back.”

So Gilio gets proven fighters such as Mario (Azabache) Martinez and Adrian Arreola and puts them in the ring together. Or he matches Rene Arredondo and Rodolfo (Gato) Gonzales. That’s the show that topped $100,000.

The Gilio philosophy is that anything less is not worth the time and trouble. A recent show at the Olympic, featuring some of his Mexican stars in less exciting bouts, took in just $32,000.

“We made money, but we find that blockbusters work for us.”

Whatever works, works. In Orange County, Fraser has been working on a lesser scale, but making enough money to suit him. He says it’s worth his trouble. Even so, he has been upgrading his shows since he began. His first show needed just $7,000 to cover the fighters’ purses. His next will need $13,000.

“That’s for more fights and better fighters,” he says. “You just can’t take a chance with four or five fights any more. Somebody might drop out that day, there might be quick knockouts. If you give the fans an hour of boxing, they won’t come back.”

Fraser also says he’s been able to get medium-hot fighters such as Sean Mannion and Cubanito Perez because the networks are running out of TV dates for fighters as they move into football season.

“So, for a small operator like myself, it works out,” Fraser said. “I can get a Perez because there aren’t TV dates for him.”

It appears to be a different philosophy altogether at the Country Club. But it’s working, too. The Goossens, spearheaded by Dan, have big ambitions. They seem more interested in developing a stable of name fighters than in carving out a niche in local boxing. “It’s nice to make money but we’re looking for that killer show,” says Goossen. “Every move is in that direction.”

In the meantime, the combination of a night-club atmosphere and Hollywood stars at ringside and decent fights have made this stable a stable operation.

However they do it, and they all do it differently, these three promoters seem to have revived boxing in Los Angeles, without the help of television or outside promoters.

Boxing Notes Former contender Frankie Duarte headlines the next show at the Country Club in Reseda. He’ll fight bantamweight Ron Cisneros Sept. 24. Duarte’s last action in his little comeback was a split decision loss to Richie Sandoval, World Boxing Assn. bantamweight champion, in a non-title fight in April. Reseda’s Dan Goossen says it’s been slow going, even though Duarte was considered for a title shot with Daniel Zaragoza, former World Boxing Council champion. “We were offered things at cheap money,” Goossen says. The Reseda show, in addition, will honor Jimmy Lennon, for 40 years one of the top ring announcers in the country. . . . Don Fraser presents his eighth show at the Irvine Marriott Sept. 26 when he goes with middleweights Sean Mannion and Billy Robertson. Also on the card is a welterweight bout between Billy’s older brother, Hedgemon Robertson, and Irish Billy Smith.