Finkel to Rule “The Empire” By Steve Kim, MaxBoxing (June 26, 2010) Special to Doghouse Boxing
From the ‘60s to the early ‘80s, Shelly Finkel promoted concerts that involved the likes of The Doors, Jimi Hendrix, Elton John, The Grateful Dead, The Almond Brothers, Paul McCartney, Janis Joplin and the Beach Boys. From that point on, he then managed the careers of Mark Breland, Pernell Whitaker, Evander Holyfield, Meldrick Taylor, Fernando Vargas and Mike Tyson. What was rumored for months in the boxing world was confirmed earlier this week when a press release announced that Finkel would become the new CEO of “The Empire,” an upstart promotional firm.
The addition was called a “game changer” by Greg Cohen, president and founder of “The Empire,” who added, "Shelly has the drive, the clout and the connections to bring this company to an unprecedented level in boxing."
But it seems that Finkel is more interested in changing games and going back to the future.
"I’ll be running the company and when I was brought in, I told them that I do not want and did not expect that main focus for this company to be boxing," Finkel told Maxboxing on Friday of his new role, that begins on July 1st. "Although there will be some fighters, some that they had before me will be gone, a few will probably be kept. They asked me next week to go through whatever roster they had. Then, the main focus- and I’ve been in California since Tuesday night- is for music, mainly festivals. As a matter of fact, my kids are having a great time. I’m going to be turning 66 on Sunday and I’m going to be at a ‘rave’ tonight."
Odds are that Finkel will be the oldest person at that function.
"They said that," said Finkel, laughing, "but I’m going to see what it’s like because I’m going to be doing some festivals and I’ve got to understand all of the mechanisms. I’m going to the Daisy Carnival tonight, here in Los Angeles."
For Finkel, this is old hat. Long before becoming one of the most influential managers in the sport of boxing, he was a concert promoter.
"My partner, Jimmy Koplik and I did the largest concert in history in ’73. We had 600,000 people there," he said of the Watkins Glen Summer Jam.
Finkel’s greatest supporters and detractors (of which there are quite a few of both) will tell you that one of his strengths is his survival instinct. With more and more musicians depending on live performances to bolster their bottom lines in the age of illegal downloads and bootlegs, Finkel sees this as the time to get back to his roots. But perhaps this is also an indictment on the state of the boxing business, overall. And from his own perspective, Finkel- while he had a sizable stable, unlike the past- he doesn’t have a Tyson or Vargas to anchor his business. And this seems to be, more or less, the era of the “adviser” and men like Al Haymon who act more or less as a promoter and can exert even more influence over the premium cable networks than Finkel ever could.
"There’s a couple of bright spots of what’s going on but it does concern me and when, at a certain age, managing becomes harder, you don’t want to be on the day-to-day, as much as you were earlier in your career," admitted Finkel. "And look, I got out of music at the time because it became pretty formulaic. Now it’s changing again and the festivals will let me be creative. I went into boxing and it gave me some of the greatest thrills of my life, whether it’s been with Tyson, going with Pacquiao out to the Philippines; you can’t explain the thrills of some of those experiences and now I feel like the management side for awhile was getting a little dull for me and now I have this opportunity and it’s going to be a lot of fun."
As for his clients reactions, Finkel said, "Some people were very upset. You can’t manage this many fighters and be everywhere so, most of them, I’ve had co-managers who have been there." Most of his current stable is aligned with Golden Boy Promotions. "Richard Schaefer and I are very close; I’m not going to desert him with the fighters that I brought but I can’t manage them. But with Robert Guerrero, if Bob Santos called me for advice or something, I’m going to be there for them. I won’t get paid; I won’t take anything.
"One of the fighters- I don’t want to mention who- they said, ’Well, what about if you just say you’re an adviser?’ I said, ’No, there’s only one who I can do that with and that’s the Klitschkos because of Europe not being here and they a have a manager.’"
Finkel says that Guerrero will be flying him and his wife up to Las Vegas for his July 31st fight against Joel Casamayor, "and that’s it."
Schaefer said of this most recent development on Thursday night at the Club Nokia prior to the latest installment of the “Fight Night Club,” We are the promoters and Shelly was the manager so it really has no implication whatsoever on the promotional relationship between all of those fighters and Golden Boy because that survives whatever his relationship with a manager is." Schaefer added, "I know with most of Shelly’s fighters, he’ll be signing his managerial stake to the co-managers."
It’s a bit ironic that this move comes on the heels of Finkel’s recent induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
"When I actually heard about it, we built up with Shelly all these young kids to a point where many of them are going to become, hopefully, major attractions and yet, at this point, decide to put down his managerial life behind him and move on as a promoter. It did surprise me a little bit," said Schaefer. "But when I sat down with him and he explained it to me, I fully understand and I do believe it’s a tremendous opportunity and I think we might actually do some promotions together- I’m not talking about boxing but music. I think there is an appetite in the United States for these festivals which have been attracting numbers, including the one here in the Coachella Valley. I was told it’s like an all-time record, the attendance. So I think Shelly is really onto something.
"We all know Shelly is a smart and clever businessman and I’m sure that the decision he took to walk away from management to go into promotions is one which I know will prove him right," continued Schaefer.
All indications are that the Finkel-Golden Boy union will continue, especially given Golden Boy’s relationship with AEG (which owns and operates hundreds of venues across the world).
Finkel once famously said of himself that while he may seem milquetoast, he most certainly wasn’t. In other words, while he might be as amiable and friendly as anyone you come across, he was also cold and cunning- almost ruthless- when it came to business. Don King once described him as a wolf in sheep’s clothing (which, considering the source of that statement, might be the greatest compliment Finkel ever received). Before his association with Tyson (which had mixed results, at best), he was thought of as boxing’s “Father Flanagan” but, in the end, he was known as a calculating dealmaker who could situate himself into positions like no one else. For every bridge he may have burned (from Main Events to Gary Shaw), he always found another safe harbor (Golden Boy).
But in two industries where a form of Darwinism is practiced on a daily basis, he didn’t just survive; he thrived for decades.
"If there is an opportunity in boxing, I will pursue it; I do not ever see it being full-time ever again for me," Finkel says of his future in boxing. "I’ll be 66; Bob Arum is in his late 70s and he’s going great. So y’ know, I don’t know what the next couple of years will be but it’s interesting. The agent for Bruce Springsteen wrote an email to Koplik- because last night it was scrolled on ESPN- and he sent me an email; it says, ’Did Shelly make more money in boxing or in music? Why is he coming back?’
"Look, everyone wants to be paid for what they do or if they create something or make something,” Finkel asserts. “But it also…at my point in my life, I want something that I enjoy. And this is something very, very exciting and a lot of fun."
SEPT. 18TH
In talking to Schaefer on Thursday night, he confirmed that they will be hosting a pay-per-view show on September 18th at the Staples Center that will feature Shane Mosley- who he would meet with on Friday afternoon to discuss various options like Sergio Mora- but the newest apple of his eye is Saul Alvarez.
"I’ve never had a fighter that prompted the reaction like this young fighter- I’m talking about Saul Alvarez. The number of phone calls, emails, letters, that flooded into our office, asking me, ’When is Saul Alvarez going to fight again?’ I’ve never seen something like that. The two most asked questions I get as a promoter, the first one is- is Mayweather-Pacquiao going to happen? And the second one is- When is Saul Alvarez going to fight again? He really made quite an impression. So my idea was to use the September 18th date here at the Staples Center to showcase Saul ’Canelo’ Alvarez.
"And I am convinced- I have no doubt- that Saul Alvarez can sell out Staples Center."
Whoa, whoa, whoa…slow down. Based on his struggle against Jose Cotto (which, granted, was exciting), Schaefer predicts a Staples Center sell-out? I think Alvarez has a future but, c’mon, right now, saying that is almost every bit the hyperbole as saying that the Mayweather-Mosley pay-per-view would garner four million buys.
But perhaps he’s just promoting, though. After all, that is his job.
ESPINOZA BOXING CLUB
While Finkel is bowing out of the managerial business, Frank Espinoza isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. On Friday, he added to his roster of young prospects.
"Antonio Orozco, he’s 7-0 with 5 knockouts; he’s 22 years old," said Espinoza of his newest charge, who hails from San Diego. "He has an extensive background; he’s won some Junior Olympics, national championships, a couple of Ringside championships. He has wins in the amateurs over Javier Molina, that went to the Olympics and the following day at the Western Regional, he also beat Jesse Vargas, the guy that fought on Thursday night. He’s got a good punch; he has a following.
"He’s a 140-pounder,” Espinoza added. “He has all the potential to be a world champion. He has power; he has a pro style. So it’s everything that I like about him and I really feel good about the signing of this kid. I know there were some other people that were interested. There was a buzz on him."
Expect him to sign with Espinoza Promotions, which is run by Frank Espinoza Jr., and his next outing will come within the next month or two.
WEEKEND FLURRIES
The next edition of “FNC” takes place on July 22nd at the Club Nokia and will have Jose Navarro, Nestor Rocha, Jamie Kavanagh, and Roman Valadez...The most impressive fighters I saw on Thursday night were Gary Russell Jr. and Jesse Vargas...On July 23rd, “Friday Night Fights” will have Beibut Shumenov defending his WBA light heavyweight belt against Vyacheslav Uzelkov...Schaefer told me that the September 18th show will be wrapped around a concert that takes place earlier that week, a public function honoring the past greats of Mexican boxing and a “Solo Boxeo” card that could be taking place right outside the street from the Staples Center on Friday night...When I asked “The Swiss Banker” if negotiations were still on-going for Pacquiao-Mayweather, he answered, "No comment"...So former Giant running back Tiki Barber is claiming he’s broke? Good grief, that guy still has fumbling problems...This week’s edition of “The Main Event” has Andre Ward and Rich Marotta......
