Climbing the boxing ladder as a newbie to prospect to contender is hard climbing as it is, but it’s become that much more of a near impossible dream for NY area pugilists of late. Since last fall, regulations enacted supposedly to ensure the health and safety of boxers, namely beefing up the minimum payout on catastrophic trauma on the insurance policy the state now dictates promoters must purchase to one million dollars per fighter on a card, has resonated hard on the region.
Namely, the cost to insure a club show is not really viable on a show with slim margins, and a promised by the NYSAC”reasonable” policy hasn’t been fashioned.
Bottom line: an area pro has had to scramble to get fights, and building up a fanbase in one’s region is all but impossible.
But this is boxing, and these are fighters, and they soldier on. Anthony Karperis of Long Island hasn’t thrown in the towel and neither has his promoter, Joe DeGuardia. Karperis will fight on Long Island, on a DeGuardia event at the Paramount in Huntington on March 24.
Karperis (13-2 with 4 KOs) has been rehabbing from a bum right shoulder, so the club show virtual ban hasn’t impacted him so much. He had shoulder surgery in September, on a torn labrum and torn rotator cuff, so he’s very much looking forward to regaining his momentum. He will face Scott Burrell (12-2 with 8 KOs; living in Brooklyn) and I asked Karperis about him.
“Watched a little on him to see what I’m up against and what style of mine I’m going to have to use more,” Karperis said. “He’s a decent boxer, rangy, annoying jab. The shoulder surgery went well and I’m looking forward to getting back in there especially in NY with all that’s going on in the boxing world!”
And does he have a message for those pols who have legislated the club show into near extinction? “You can’t keep us down, no matter how hard you try,” the hitter said.
Here is the release on the show:
Star Boxing chief Joe DeGuardia is fighting the unprecedented situation of no boxing club shows in the state of New York by pairing Hicksville, NY native Anthony Karperis (13-2 4KO’S) defending his New York State Jr. Welterweight title against Brooklyn, NY prospect Scott Burrell (12-2 8KO’S) in a 10 round contest at The Paramount in Huntington, NY on Saturday, March 24, 2017.
DeGuardia has gone on record with his fellow New York promoters vehemently objecting to the new rules put in place by the state commission on Sept. 1, 2016, which includes a $1,000,000 traumatic brain injury clause for each fighter. The new regulation eliminated all pro boxing in the entire state of NY from September 1, thru December 31.Up until January, the policy didn’t even exist, so nobody could promote any boxing events in the entire state. You would have to go back to the 1800’s to find a time where there was no pro boxing in NY for the months of September and October, and yet, this new law saw us all with no pro boxing for 4 months! Now, while a policy has been approved, the cost of that policy (as well as other recent NY regulatory added costs) has been so significant that anything other than major international shows are fiscally impossible.
DeGuardia has always been a strong proponent of the club level type of shows which traditionally have been the heartbeat of the sport, and lead to the major international events, both of which have been a part of NY’s rich boxing history. DeGuardia knows that these shows are vital to keep the sport alive and provide such outlets for boxers, fans and venues. While DeGuardia is facing a huge financial loss, he is moving forward for his boxers, venue partners and, perhaps most significantly, to bring more attention to this issue, which is crucial to so many.
DeGuardia had this to say about his upcoming event, “for the first time in my career I am promoting a boxing event where there is such a dual focus. This is a fight that will shine the light on new rule changes and havoc that these new rules have caused to boxers, fans, venues, local towns and numerous others. It is the ultimate dichotomy – we are doing a club show and making it a point to show that we can’t do them anymore if this new regulation isn’t changed. This may well be the last club-type pro boxing show in state of NY. We fully understand the consequences of doing a show like this with the exorbitant proportionate cost of the new insurance and other regulations. We are doing this show under the worst of conditions and it’s a damn shame because we have an unbelievable lineup of fights planned. Our main event is what boxing used to be like in New York, two local kids, both fine fighters in their own right, battling it out for the state title. And instead of looking forward to a great night of Boxing we have this dark cloud hanging over all of our heads, as numerous other promotions in various places throughout NY have been completely shut down. Hopefully by doing this event it will bring to light the dire situation in New York, and a call to action to change the regulation”.
A sensational undercard, in keeping with tradition, featuring many local fighters doing battle with each other has been lined up and will be announced shortly.
Tickets may be purchased by calling Star Boxing 718 823-2000 or at www.starboxing.com, The Paramount box office 631 673-7300, or TICKETMASTER at ticketmaster.com 1 800 745-3000. Tickets are priced at $50 and up.
