Professional boxing will debut at the Magic City Casino –site of the former Flagler Dog Track- on Friday, November 19.

Badia Spices, a leading food condiment company will sponsor seven monthly fight cards to feature high caliber main event performers and local prospects.  Corporate sponsorship in boxing is not unusual as Gillette razor blades sponsored televised boxing shows for decades. Following that legendary pattern, the fights at Magic City Casino will be called Badia Spices Friday Night Fights.

The promotional team that will produce the cards will be headed by Ramiro Ortiz, a former amateur boxer, veteran promoter and recent Florida State Boxing Commissioner.

In the eighties, Ortiz partnered with the late Hank Kaplan –boxing premier historian- and under the Pugilistic Promotions banner ran three dozen professional cards in Fort Lauderdale featuring the professional debut of future heavyweight contender Jose Ribalta as well as developing the careers of many local fighters, including the very popular Juan Arroyo.

“This is the rebirth of Pugilistic Promotions,” Ortiz stated, “and the first show will be dedicated to Hank Kaplan, a beloved boxing icon who was everyone’s best friend in boxing. I knew him since I was in high school and Hank was the type of man who took time out of his busy schedule to pay attention to a teenager who loved boxing. He was constantly receiving calls from journalists from all over the world, movie people needing research data, actors studying boxing for screen roles, historians researching books, but he always had time for me and others like me. When the boy became a man we promoted together and were the best of pals until his last breath.”

Ortiz, a well known bank executive is counting with a support team that includes Richard Dobal –an experienced matchmaker- and Enrique Encinosa,  a former amateur boxer and journalist, recently inducted into the Florida Boxing Hall of Fame.

Dobal -the youngest of the three- is a former amateur boxer who has solid experience as a matchmaker and has promoted shows in Florida and Minnesota, representing several top contenders and some of the best local boxing talents.

Dobal has announced that the first promotion in November will feature Eromosele Albert –a two time Olympian from Nigeria- has a 22-4-1 pro record with 10 KO wins. He has victories over Yori Boy Campas and Daniel Eduoard. The preliminaries will showcase two undefeated Cuban prospects:  Inocente Fiz and Pedro Rodriguez.

“The Badia Spices Friday Night Fights will feature both international and local talent,” Dobal stated, “We plan on following the pattern set by Ramiro and Hank in the original Pugilistic Promotions, offering competitive fights between good talent that will create a loyal fan base.  As a team we have over a century experience between the three of us. We are not old but we all started very young and there is no aspect of boxing that we do not know.”

Enrique Encinosa, a former amateur boxer who managed former Cruiserweight champion Robert Daniels and has authored eight books –one of them co-authored with Hank Kaplan- is excited about the upcoming promotions.

“Badia is a solid sponsor who loves boxing and the Magic City Casino is a very centrally located venue,” Encinosa states, “and the first card is in Hank’s memory because he mentored all three of us. We all loved that guy and miss him a lot. Personally, I can't wait to hear that opening bell on November 19."