There is always something going on at the famed and fabled Gleason’s Gym, in the DUMBO section of Brooklyn, and in existence since 1937.
Gym boss Bruce Silverglade steers the ship and has been masterful at rolling with the punches, adapting to the times, doing the things that the best boxers do to accumulate a rewarding and laudatory career.
Looking at the Gleason’s calendar on their re-vamped website, you’ll note that on Oct. 13, there is a fight night scheduled.
Boxers from Mexico and Switzerland will engage in sweetly scientifc scraps with American hitters, and the event is open to the public. Tix are $25, kids six and under free; you can watch amateurs from those locales get it on.
Silverglade..
Silvergade in his office on Sept. 29, 2018.
..told me that the round robin is being supported by the World Boxing Council, and he appreciates that sanctioning bodies’ committment to supporting all tiers of the sport. Silverglade noted one issue; “many of the Mexico boxers have a hundred, or 150 fights,” so matching them against less experienced American fighters will be a slight challenge. He will surmount the hurdle, he always does…
Silverglade invites white collar types to train and then have a match, and proceeds go to giving kids who can use a hand up aid. He invites a bunch of them, providing they keep their grades up, to his annual Fantasy Camp every August.
Beyond that, be aware that Gleason’s has a stellar Halloween bash, with a juicy $1,000. cash prize going to the best costumed individual. Details on that to come…
NOTE: Doug Vannoni, of DigitalE665, told me that the revamped Gleason’s website is a labor of love. There will be more integration of social media account, and there will be online coaching and the like. Click here to see the Gleason’s site.
Founder/editor Michael Woods got addicted to boxing in 1990, when Buster Douglas shocked the world with his demolition of the then-impregnable Mike Tyson.
The Brooklyn-based journalist has covered the sport since for ESPN The Magazine, ESPN.com, Bad Left Hook and RING. His journalism career started with NY Newsday in 1999.
Michael Woods is also an accomplished blow by blow and color man, having done work for Top Rank, DiBella Entertainment, EPIX, and for Facebook Fightnight Live, since 2017.