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Charles Jay
Commentary on MMA history…as it’s happening
A PROMOTER WHO REALLY CAN

The International Fight League (IFL) is either dead or dying - depending on who you talk to. What they’re doing and how they’re doing it clearly hasn’t worked. But maybe the team concept works better the way Donofrio Entertainment is doing it.

At the Palace of Auburn Hills, outside Detroit, which might indeed wind up hosting the NBA Finals again this year, promoter Joseph Donofrio is putting on his “2 Countries, 1 Cage” event on June 28. It’s Team USA against Team Canada, and while it may not answer any age-old questions about which country is better, it still offers a taste of what it’s like to fight for a team when there is truly something on the line.

Actually, we should mention that one of these events has happened already - on April 26, Team Canada emerged victorious, so Team USA wants a little revenge, and the fans - 5000 of them, which in case you’re not aware is pretty damn good for a local MMA show - have essentially mandated it be brought back.

Twenty fights are on the agenda for this next promotion, which is probably going to be better than the first one. This is not a big pay-per-view show, or even a little pay-per-view show. These are promoters trying to build a local fan base in the Detroit area, brick by brick, or, to use the analogy that is indigenous to the area, part by part by part. In doing so, they’re pulling out all the stops for this one, with a full schedule of pyrotechnics, 100-foot catwalks, heavily-decorated “escorts” who will take each fighter to the cage.

And of course, I’m always interested in “world-class ring girls,” which they’re promising.

Hey, can I get a tape of that last show?

Donofrio has also put on some boxing cards in and around Detroit, and he’s in a great venue here, as the privately-owned Palace does some real good cross-marketing with its season-ticket holders on events outside of basketball. They understand how important it is to get customers inside the building. They’ll likely have plenty of them here.

Donofrio puts boxing first, according to the press release, and maybe that will change in the future, as he gradually discovers that there’s probably a better consumer market for MMA. But he’s part of a growing trend of boxing promoters who have been expanding over to mixed martial arts, as they realize that the mechanics of a promotion are very similar. Some exhibit more naked opportunism than others, basically looking to package and sell a bill of goods in order to make a “score,” sometimes taking no real risk in the process, almost as if carpet-bagging (I’m not naming any names).

But it is good to see that some of the promoters are perfectly happy to work for it; to build the base from the ground up, by selling tickets to real, live fans.

How refreshing.