Northern California Veterans Boxing Association want shows promoted in San Francisco.

Had lunch today with Eliza Olson and several dozen admitted boxing dinosaurs at the NCVBA function in San Francisco. Olsen carried cargo way north of her fighting weight, but pledges a comeback having won a World Boxing Championship a few years back. The other boxing lifers in attendance just want San Francisco to return to it's glory days. When Olson's Hall of Fame grandfather Bobo was World Champion between 1953-55, the Bay Area was second only to New York in promoted boxing shows and training venue. Now it seems to be a graveyard. Arturo Gastelum of Tango Productions put on a successful amateur show, and Golden Boy has Telefutura Spanish TV in town from time to time at Longshormen's Hall, but overall, the boxing scene has been moribond, pretty much since the passing of 50 year Hall of Fame San Francisco Chronicle boxing writer Jack Fiske' dismissal from the paper some 15 years ago. That's not to say Northern California is not producing talent. Oakland's Andre Ward, Nonito Donaire of San Leandro, and Gilroy's Robert Guerrero have won World Titles...Ana Julaton and Ava Knight are women's boxing stars from the Bay Area, Karim Mayfield of San Francisco remains undefeated, and Salinas' Eloy Perez fights for his first World Title against Adrian Broner in St. Louis next month. But there are only professional shows in this area when it serves bigger promoters like Golden Boy and Goossen-Tutor to give their local signed fighters a sniff at glory on their home turf. San Francisco is the home of ZERO unattached promoters who will give local pros a chance to compete, and revitalize boxing's soul in the City by the Bay.
Spider Joe Burke and Joey Amato are two of the NCVBA kingpins. They invited me to speak about my 15 years of promoting in Santa Cruz and Monterey, and several of the members tried convincing me to bring my formula to San Francisco. While their requests were much appreciated, since many of them attended SHAKEDOWN IN QUAKETOWN, and RIOT AT THE HYATT shows, I had to tell them "this ship has sailed"! I could have provided dozens of reasons why a local promoter doesn't stand a chance to make a profit in the current boxing world dominated by capitalized Big promoters, but decided to mention only the outrageous budget required to put on that caliber of show, how a former Executive Director of the California State Athletic Commission damaged each of my final 6 boxing shows (series ended in October 2007), how it's impossible to secure enough sponsorship without a TV contract, and of course the timing in my case of a depressed economy. Pay per view has become a white collar attraction for a blue colar sport. It serves Top Rank and Golden Boy who own Showtime and HBO contracts, but not the masses. Meaningful fights on free TV are a thing of the past, and of course the biggest fights involving boxers from these competing promotion companies are never made due to a feud between Bob Arum and Oscar De La Hoya, due to each promoters desire to control both main event fighters. These factors and others have eroded the core values of the Sweet Science, and those controlling the proceedings care more about their own power than the soul of our sport. The aged assembly of NCVBA remembered the glory days in San Francisco, highlighted by the first circular ring in the United States built in a San Francisco shipyard and demonstrated before workman in 1944 by former middleweight champ Fred Apostoli (who had 25 bouts in his hometown of San Francisco) and Vic Grupico. Ezzard Charles' heavyweight bouts sold out the Cow Palace in 1949 and 1951 with more than 15,000 fans. The Dick Tiger versus Gene Fullmer middleweight title match in 1962 at Candlestick Park had some 30,000 fans. Newman's Gym was the epicenter of northern California boxing for over 60 years in what is now known as San Francisco's Tenderloin District, and was a preferred training facility for Jack Dempsey, Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano, Muhammad Ali (Cassius Clay during the 1960 Olympic Trials held in San Francisco), and George Foreman after his return from the 1968 Olympics.
Recalling memories from 15 years of sold out boxing shows in Monterey and Santa Cruz fired up the members who miss the good old days. It's too bad I had to inject a dose of reality into the presentation, and decline their pleas for me to promote again, this time in San Francisco.