[Previous entry: "Big Weekend in Idaho--Iran Barkley & Saul Mamby Return to the Ring!"] [Main Index] [Next entry: "Weights from Chicago/Solo Boxeo Tecate"]
02/14/2008 Archived Entry: "8 Count Production's Dominic Pesoli Reflects on His 10 Years as a Boxing Promoter"
8 Count Production's Dominic Pesoli Reflects on His 10 Years as a Boxing Promoter
Photo and interview by Juan C. Ayllon
Dominic Pesoli (right) and "Macho" Miguel Hernandez shake hands over some business negotiated from Pesoli's office at JABB Boxing Gym last year
CHICAGO—In a city numbering the “Long Count” Dempsey-Tunney II, Sugar Ray Robinson’s dramatic demolition of Rocky Graziano, and the torrid second Graziano-Tony Zale war in its rich boxing heritage, there’s one major promotional player who’s risen to prominence over the last couple of years. That would be Dominic Pesoli, 45, president and promoter of 8 Count Productions.
Born in 1962 in Chicago to John “Fazol” and Rose Pesoli, Dominic grew up in the Little Italy neighborhood and graduated in 1980 from the acclaimed Chicago magnet high school, Whitney Young, where he played football as a quarterback for one year and a wide receiver for three. Pesoli also played in hockey leagues and boxed in the CYO amateur boxing program, where he won a light heavyweight championship. “I don’t remember the year,” Pesoli says.
Following graduation, he did a lot of different jobs and activities, including a construction painting business he founded with his childhood friend, Nick Di Cosola, named “Dom and Nicks Decorating.” In 1990, he put the business aside and enrolled in a two-year program in industrial design at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh.
“I only went for a year,” Pesoli says. “I made honors the first year, but I just had too many financial responsibilities. I was 28, 29, and I had bills—it was really hard to go to school full-time and afford to pay all that stuff. I had to let the dream go.”
Returning to Chicago, he resumed the business with “Dom and Nicks.” It was then that a chance phone call turned his life around.
The Multiplex Gym had just opened its doors in the Gold Coast, when a friend joining the gym discovered that they were looking for a boxing instructor/coach. He left them Pesoli’s contact information. They called, Pesoli took the job part-time, and somewhere between 1994 and 1995, the Multiplex wanted Pesoli to create more awareness of his program.
In response, he came up with the idea of a celebrity charity-boxing event featuring former Partridge Family actor and media bad boy Danny Bonaduce (who worked at the time for the Chicago rock radio station, “The Loop”) and Chicago NBC Sports commentator, Jon Kelley.
Kelley—whom Pesoli prepared intensively—pulled the upset over the aggressive and more experienced Bonaduce, winning by decision.
“It was headgear, 16 ounce gloves. Jon never had any type of boxing experience,” says Pesoli. “You know, Danny at that point had…I think two, three or maybe even four fights. So, I trained him really hard!”
Lauded for the show’s success and told he was a natural at it, Pesoli took a leap of faith and incorporated “8 Count Productions” in December 1997. His first boxing show was held on February 20, 1998 at the Park West Theatre in Chicago.
It has not been an easy 10 years. The costs associated with operating boxing events made it difficult to turn a profit. Moreover, he butted heads with cross-town rival Bobby Hitz, a former heavyweight boxer who was promoted by the famous female promoter, Jackie Kallen and had been knocked out by George Foreman. Their clashes were subject of nearly urban legend proportions whispered in the sweaty halls of Chicago’s boxing gyms.
Still, Pesoli plugged away and, as Hitz’s involvement in boxing waned with distractions outside boxing, Pesoli’s business activities—and contacts—soared.
With his successes, came regularly televised coverage with the likes of Telefutura’s ‘Solo Boxeo’ and co-promoted shows with Oscar de la Hoya’s “Golden Boy Promotions” and Bob Arum’s Top Rank.
His high water mark event to date was co-promoting the Fernando Vargas-Javier Castillejo bout at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois on August 20, 2005. He’s also featured WBC Lightweight Champion David Diaz—who’s not a member of his stable—numerous times on the way to his title, and counts Diaz as a spectator at many of his events.
Still, his objective of promoting a world champion from within his stable eludes him—so far. It may just be a matter of time.
On Pesoli’s first show at the Park West:
“Mike ‘The Fly’ Garcia fought for the Illinois State title against Carmelo Negron, Pesoli said, “and then Rocky Hernandez fought on the undercard, Angel Hernandez—‘El Toro’; there were other people, [but] I can’t remember who else was on that card.”
It seems fitting that 10 years later, both Mike Garcia and Rocky Martinez will be inducted into the 8 Count Hall of Fame this Friday at Pesoli’s 10th anniversary show.
On the harsh realities of promoting and losing money on his shows in the beginning, versus the notion that promoters make money hand over fist:
“That is a really big misconception,” said Pesoli. “At this level, it’s really hard for promoters to do well. Sometimes fighters don’t realize how much money’s involved with putting on a show. I get the ‘Oh, you’re a millionaire,’ ‘you’re rich,’ you’re this—you’re that. Nobody understands.
“There’s just too many items to list. Putting on an event, you’re responsible for every cost associated with it: Venue costs, ring lighting, fighters’ purses, travel, hotel, per diem, marketing, printing of posters, your matchmaker, your publicist, your round card girls—it keeps going. Just keep adding it up. It’s just a lot of expense. And then everybody and their brother wants free tickets!” Pesoli laughs.
“Oh God, sometimes I still lose,” he says. “It’s back and forth. It depends on what you’re doing.
I mean, we have a really expensive show coming up in the end of March with [undefeated prospect] Tavoris Cloud fighting for the NABA and the USBA light heavyweight titles. Each one of those titles, the sanctioning costs alone, you’re looking at probably five to six thousand dollars. That’s ten, eleven, twelve thousand dollars right there. Then you have purses.”
On fighters’ pay, which vary with such factors as fighters records, whether they’re taking a tough fight, or number of rounds:
“I’d say on a level that we do that you’re accustomed to with the ‘Solo Boxeo’ main events, we generally [pay] anywhere from $7,500 to $12,500 [per fighter]; and co-main events, depending on how many rounds—if it’s an eight round fight, four to five thousand—mostly four. And then 10 round co-main events, maybe five thousand on the ‘Solo Boxeo’ [shows].
“But then, you have all the undercard fights. Usually, it’s about two hundred bucks a scheduled round [per fighter]. So, if it’s a four round fight, it’s eight hundred bucks.
“When I first started, it was a hundred dollars a round, but now it’s more like two hundred dollars a round.”
On the upside for a boxer’s money-making opportunities:
“If you progress the right way, you can go on and make hundreds of thousands of dollars, and then go from there, if you keep winning, you can make seven figures.”
Dominic with Tina (photo courtesy of Dominic Pesoli)
On meeting Tina Park, whom he eventually took on with his business and married:
“We met at Starbucks. She was living in California at the time, visiting home for the holidays. I was hanging out with my friend, Jon Kelley, and she was with a girlfriend of hers that I knew and [she] introduced us, and I invited them to a party that same night. She came out. I told her that I was going to California for a vacation right after Christmas, and I told her that it would be nice if I could call her. So, we kind of started dating in California. [It was] a little long distance in the beginning, but, I would say maybe five, six months into the relationship, she came back to Chicago.
“We got married February 4th, 2006. We were in [Las] Vegas for the Fernando Vargas-Sugar Shane Mosley fight—the first one, and we got married the night before the show. We planned it, but it just was appropriate for us.
On Tina’s involvement with 8 Count, who now is in charge of operations:
”Tina’s very instrumental—now, she’s very hands-on. In the beginning, she was helping me with little stuff, you know. And then it progressed into bigger and bigger stuff. She does a lot. But, then again, I’m fortunate, because she loves boxing, so it makes it easier.”
On what 8Count pulls in with its business:
“I don’t want to talk about that. I could just say that a lot of people’s perceptions are misled. A lot of people think because I built my own house that I have all kinds of money. I built the house myself, you know, 90 percent of the labor. If people see you drive a decent car, right away, you’re a millionaire. I have bills like everyone else. I have car payments like everyone else.
“Like I said, it’s up and down. My ultimate goal is obviously to create a world champion—not just one, but as many as I can bring to fruition. I’ve been doing this 10 years and I haven’t had a world champion yet.
“There’s a bigger picture with everything we do and, yes I love what I do. But, the ultimate goal is for 8 Count to have a stable of fighters and have some of those fighters obviously be world champions.”
On what Pesoli looks for in fighters he’s considering promoting:
“Obviously, I look and see if they have talent. I also want someone who is dedicated, who goes to the gym and trains their butt off and has heart, because sometimes heart will overcome talent. You know, like there’s some guys that are maybe not as talented as other guys, but they have the heart. I look at that.
”I also look to see if we gel. I would like to work with people who trust me, and also people I can trust as well. It’s like a marriage. I mean, they’re signed to 8 Count, and you’re committed to move their career along. It works better if everyone gets along.”
On what 8 Count Productions offers fighters:
“Well, obviously, a guarantee: certain purse amounts, certain number of fights a year, that kind of stuff. The whole thing is when you find talent, they need a promoter that’s going to keep moving their careers along. And a promoter—when they do that—every time they put that fighter on a show, they’re taking a financial risk.
“So, my job is to keep their careers going forward—get them the experience, get them the fights—and hopefully they progress and they become a world champion.”
On what fighters, as a fight fan and as a promoter, really get him excited:
“All the guys that I promote, my wife and I have a personal relationship with. When they’re in that ring, we’re very nervous for them. We feel just probably like a family member feels watching their loved one fight. So, we’re very connected with the people who are in our stable. When we go to the fights, we experience all the emotional levels…[and with the added burden of] my financial risk, I’m very emotional my guys up there. I’m nervous like they are and like their families are. So, as far as my stable, I’m very excited watching all of them fight.
“But, outside of my stable, fighters that excite me, I would say like David Diaz. David’s a personal friend of mine and I love him like a brother. So, to see him succeed like he has and fighting in Vegas and possible big fights with Pacquiao—I don’t know. It’s so much different when you have that personal connection with someone. ‘Cause I can watch guys that I admire that I don’t really have a personal relationship with and be excited, but not as excited as someone I have a personal connection with.
“But, guys I enjoy watching outside the people I know: Your Oscar de la Hoyas; Joe Calzaghe—I think he’s a technician, an awesome boxer; Pacquiao, obviously—I just like fighters who go in there and make things exciting [and] put it all on the line.”
On his role in getting Miguel Hernandez into “The Contender” boxing reality show:
“Well, no, Miguel auditioned for ‘The Contender’ on his own. And actually, at that point to get on ‘The Contender, obviously he had to sell himself. I wouldn’t say that I was instrumental at all. But, I was happy for him to get that opportunity. But, I don’t want to take credit for something I really didn’t have anything to do with.
On disappointments as a promoter:
“The disappointments I’ve had have maybe been financial disappointments. A fighter of mine who was fighting for an opportunity at something bigger—I don’t really get disappointed at that, because I know every guy that’s had an opportunity has given it a hundred and fifty percent.
“I would [also] say that certain people in the business that end up not being people you thought they were. It’s like any other business: Cut throat.
“I also think some of the disappointing things in this sport is all the bad-mouthing that goes on behind your back. You know, I’ve had close relationships with a few people who I considered friends—there were three or four people that were very close to me that turned on me, and that’s kind of disappointing. For stupid reasons or no apparent reasons. That kind of stuff is just sad.”
On one former close friend’s spreading the word that Pesoli was involved in the Mafia:
“I have no relationship with the Mafia. I mean, yeah, I’m Italian; I grew up in Little Italy. Does my family know people who are in the Mafia? Absolutely! But does that mean that my family or I’m in the Mafia? Absolutely not!
“And, I’m a very honest person: I take a lot of pride in what I do and I take a lot of pride in the people who I choose to be friends and associate myself with. I’m a very straight shooter.
“So, when you talk about disappointing, he’s one of the people I would say that really disappointed me in the sense that this is a person I let into my house, who I considered a friend, and then when he started all this bad talk about me—saying all these bad things about me—I was disappointed. I was thinking, ‘I can’t believe this person’s doing this.’
“One thing I can say in [rival Chicago promoter] Bobby’s defense: He never pretended to like me or be my friend. You know?
“In this situation with [name withheld], he was a friend. And then you have to look back and say, ‘was he ever really a friend, for him to be this angry or upset?’ Over what—I have no idea. I even called him up and asked him, ‘did I do something to you?’
“Whatever. I guess people get bitter, or upset, or jealous or whatever it might be. You know what I’m saying?
“You know, the one thing that happens, too, is as momentum builds and your career gets a little bit more successful, you also gain more enemies or people that might be jealous of what you’re doing or accomplishing.
“I try not to get wrapped up in all of that. I called up [name withheld] and personally told him that I was really surprised at how he was acting. That was it. I didn’t call up and scream at him or anything.
“I just try to focus on my business whether there’s good things going on or bad things going on. I just try to focus on my business. That’s it.
“You can take all that negative conversation and turn it into a positive.”
On fighters dropping out of fights last minute:
”Well, that’s part of the game. We just had it happen for this show on Friday. Alejandro Perez dropped out and Francisco Rodriguez was moved into the main event. That stuff happens. In the beginning, I really used to get upset about it—not necessarily at the fighter, but just like, ‘Oh God, now what’s going to happen to the quality of the show?’ As you get more experienced with the business, you know how to roll with the punches and you know how to turn things around.”
On establishing his gym, JABB Boxing Gym with Mike “Fly” Garcia:
“We’re in our fifth year, so [we opened in] 2003. Michael—my childhood friend—and I are partners in JABB. We had the same boxing coach growing up. Michael and I have known each other for years.”
Final Thoughts:
I just want to thank our local fight fans who come out and support 8 Count shows, and I just want them to know that we’re going to continue to bring quality events and quality match-ups for them. We want just to put on top-notch shows. I pretty much want to thank them.
