The Retired Boxers Foundation wants the fines imposed on professional boxers to used to pay for boxer safety issues–not deposited in ANY state’s General Fund!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 30, 2003
Simi Valley, CA–Today, the Nevada State Athletic Commission is scheduled to debate whether or not to mandate Magnetic Resonance Imaging/Magnetic Resonance Angiography testing at a cost of over $400 per athlete. The Retired Boxers Foundation fully endorses any efforts to protect the athletes and to improve the safety of the sport, HOWEVER, the Foundation contends that the athletes have already "paid their dues" making the sport of boxing profitable in the State of Nevada. To impose a $425 fee on a boxer who makes less than $800 for a fight does not make good business sense for the athlete or the Commission. The Retired Boxers Foundation is advocating that fees, as well as all fines imposed on professional athletes, be used to pay for these tests rather than taking another chunk out of the professional boxers paycheck.

According to Alex Ramos, Founder and President of the Retired Boxers Foundation, "It makes no sense to fine boxers and then give the money to the state! That money should be used to improve the sport and make it safer. The fans keep the sport profitable in Las Vegas–and they are good for the casino and hotel business as well. In other words, the fight game is good for the Nevada economy....you think they could show some respect to the athletes and at least let them keep the money they already earned once–in the sport of boxing."

Many people would be surprised to know that when the athletes are fined–such as the $100,000 fine imposed on Fernando Vargas for testing positive for steroids and Tyson's enormous seven figure fine–the money is relegated to the State of Nevada's General Fund, not the State Athletic Commission. The Retired Boxers Foundation is already on the record stating that any fine imposed on the athletes should be used to improve the sport, not the State's general fund. Jacquie Richardson, Executive Director of the Retired Boxers Foundation explains the rationale behind their advocacy to return the money to the Commission this way, "Fernando Vargas's fine of $100,000 would cover 235 MRI/MRA tests and God knows how many could have been paid for with Tyson's fine. There is simply no good excuse not to use the money made on the backs of the fighters to improve their sport and make it safer. Boxing has been good for Nevada and now we would like Nevada to be good to the athletes as well as a Commission that ranks as one of the best in the Country. Give them the resources they need to oversee this sport and make it safer for the athletes, who earned the money in the first place. We are not asking the state to invest taxpayer dollars on the State Athletic Commission...we are just asking them to reinvest the boxers money–their fines–on the boxers safety."

So who can make the change that would allow the boxers fines to be reinvested in the sport of boxing and in boxing safety? Unfortunately, the decision does not lie with the Commission, but with the legislature of the State of Nevada. There is not one person on the State Athletic Commission who would oppose using the fine money to improve the sport of boxing.

The problem is that the Commissioners are all political appointees and the staff is essentially on the State's payroll and a not in a position to lobby for a change in the existing laws that mandate the return of all fines to the State General Fund. At one time, this legislation was probably crafted to "pay back" the state for the costs incurred in funding the Commission. Obviously, the sport of boxing has prospered in Nevada and the State of Nevada no longer operates a State Athletic Commission in the red. Nevada's Commission, under the outstanding direction of Marc Ratner, is one of the best run Commissions in the Country. In other words, the Nevada State Athletic Commission is NOT a burden on the State of Nevada and it is time to change the law.

Today, the fines imposed on the boxers are nothing less than a "windfall" to the State General Fund and the Retired Boxers Foundation thinks it is time to use the money for the labor force that created the windfall.

The Retired Boxers Foundation and our representative Stitch Duran–a fine Las Vegas cut man and devoted advocate of boxer safety–have already made the case for using boxer fines to support safety and improvement of boxing at the Nevada State Athletic Commission hearing when the Fernando Vargas fine was levied.

It is up to everyone who cares about the sport of boxing to speak out on this issue. The Commissioners and staff, including Flip Homansky and Dr. Goodman, are not in a position to ask that the fines imposed on boxers be remanded to the Commission for improving the sport. If they were able to advocate for the allocation of boxer fines to the Commission, they would in a heartbeat. Truth be told, they are devoted to the fighters and they could jeopardize their positions by advocating for these funds from the Nevada legislature and we certainly do not want to lose the good people in boxing. If the good people of Nevada really want to see boxing become self sufficient in Las Vegas, and by that I mean, pay for the safety precautions they are soon to consider mandating, then the people of Nevada have to call their legislative representatives and demand change. They need to respectfully tell the elected officials that they want the money earned in boxing and taken from the athletes in the form of fines, to be used where it is needed most–to improve the sport. If the fine money is made off the backs of the athletes, then it only makes sense that the sport CAN be self sufficient if this money is used to support the improvement of boxing and athlete safety.

The Retired Boxers Foundation encourages the newly organized Joint Association of Boxers (JAB) to join us in our mission of improving the sport of boxing. We think that JAB, with the resources of the Teamsters, are in the best position to lobby for a change in Nevada law which would designate boxing fines to be used by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for boxer safety, rather than by the state for their general fund. This is a labor issue that impacts the boxer's income (when a majority of boxers make less than $800 for a fight, an assessment of $425 is unreasonable), the working condition and their future. These changes are too late for the athletes that we assist through the Retired Boxers Foundation, but a considerable chunk of our mission is advocacy to improve the sport–especially athlete safety–so that some day, the RBF can go out of business. That is highly unlikely in this lifetime and God knows that there are too many athletes who are depending on the good people in boxing to do the right thing.

Respectfully,

Jacquie Richardson, Executive Director

Alex "The Bronx Bomber" Ramos, Founder & President

RETIRED BOXERS FOUNDATION

http://www.retiredboxers.org

JaxFacts@ix.netcom.com