MightyGloves.com

Fight Promoter University - A Real Knockout

posted by Kathleen Holland on August 28, 2006

Not only has Englebrecht had a phenomenally successful show, “Battle in the Ballroom”, a pro boxing event, which he has been doing for 22 years at the Irvine Marriot in Irvine, California. At the current time he has six shows a year and has had sell-outs for the last ten shows. He also sold one of his promotion companies to none other than Oscar De La Hoya who he trained and has now become one of the biggest, if not the biggest promoter today.

Englebrecht has created a program that covers all aspects of being a promoter, from formulating your budget, to securing a venue, to putting your card together, to fight night and everything in between. He has gotten it down to a science, a “sweet science”.

Fight Promoter University II (FPU) just concluded in Irvine, California and all students graduated and received their MBA (Master of Boxing Administration) after three days of intense instruction and hands on training. I was fortunate enough to attend the class and I couldn’t have asked for a better or more informative program.

We started the class out on Wednesday, August 23 with a welcome breakfast and a get acquainted session before we got down to business. The class was made up of 38 students from 20 states, including 7 females.

After a welcome from Englebrecht and a brief history of FPU and what to expect during the course, we were treated to a keynote address by HBO Fight Commentator, Jim Lampley, who captivated the students through his memorable stories and his extreme passion for boxing that seemed to bring tears not only to his eyes, but the eyes of most, if not all of the students.

Roy then took over and our work began. (I might mention that I say it was work, and yes, it was, but, it was one of the most enjoyable three days I can remember.) Instruction on “Fight Promotions Basic Steps to Success” gave us an in-depth look at costs of putting on a show, what you can expect to make or what you can lose if you don’t follow the “ten steps to success”. We learned how to set up our budget, what purpose athletic or boxing commissions play, what a matchmaker’s role is, what managers and trainers do how to secure sponsors and other revenue and everything else it takes to have a successful fight promotion business.

Englebrecht brought in some of the premier professionals in the fight business to ensure that all avenues of promotion were covered. Andrew Ebel, Director of Marketing for Fight Night at the Tank and the San Jose Sharks at the HP Pavilion gave us insight into what it takes to market and advertise your show to make it successful. Bill Caplan, Hall of Fame Publicist who works with Top Rank and Carl Freitag, Editor in Chief of Fightnews.com informed us on the importance of public relations and how to publicize your promotion. Lester Bedford, CEO of the Bedford Agency, who has had some of the most successful shows in Texas, spoke on pricing and selling fight tickets. Jeremy Lappen, CEO of World Fighting Alliance discussed mixed martial arts, and what he sees in the future for this up and coming sport. Starting and building a fight promotion company was the topic presented by Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions and that was followed up with Robert Kies, CFO of Golden Boy Promotions explaining the importance of budgets and how to run your company successfully. Working with your State Athletic Commission was explained by Armando Garcia, Executive Officer of the California Athletic Commission and one of the best matchmakers in the business, Eric Gomez, Vice President and Head Matchmaker for Golden Boy Promotions taught us how matchmaking can make or break a show and the importance of finding a good matchmaker. Former manager of James Toney and “First Lady of Boxing”, Jackie Kallen, who was the inspiration for the movie “Against the Ropes” starring Meg Ryan, portraying her struggle to find and obtain success in a male dominated world of boxing, and Tom Loeffler, the President of K2 Promotions, the promotion company for the Klitchko Brothers, gave us a lesson on working with managers, trainers and fighters.

The classroom sessions were highly informative, but it didn’t stop there. We actually got to participate in a real show. We learned and/or performed all aspects from the weigh-in on Wednesday to fight night on Thursday, including venue assembly, fighter walk-in, ring card girl attendants, (there wasn’t a shortage on volunteers for ring card girl attendant) glovemen, and even ushering and ticket taking. We got real hands on experience.

If you think it ended there, guess again. After our Friday morning instruction it was time for graduation and our surprise guest commencement speaker. I was so excited to learn that world class trainer, manager and promoter, Emanuel Steward would close the session with an enlightening, informative and entertaining address before we were awarded our MBAs.

The highlight for me was the whole three days. If you have ever thought of becoming a fight promoter, this course is imperative. Roy has come up with the ultimate program, instructing us on the right and honest way to have a successful promotion business. He has given us his years of experience, detailing what to do and what not to do, and has pledged to continue helping the alumni of FPU whenever we have questions, indefinitely.

The cost for FPU is $1,995 per person and in my opinion it was worth every penny. The date for the next session has not been confirmed, but it will be sometime in the first quarter of 2007. For more information on the program visit FPU’s website at http://www.fightpromoteruniversity.com/

Story by Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee

« Previous article: Rio Grande Valley to host HBO boxing event, Sept. 23

Next article: Emile Griffith Interview »