Richmond police will take on firefighters in charity boxing match

A friendly bout of fisticuffs will pit Richmond firefighters and police officers against one another for the chance at boxing glory while championing charitable causes.

The event, dubbed “River City Fight Night: Red, Fight & Blue,” is set for 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 5 at River City Roll. The matches, tentatively scheduled as five servicemember fights and three professional bouts, are part of a monthly series orchestrated by River City Promotions that benefit its nonprofit, Guardian of the Gloves, which creates opportunities for local youth to learn boxing. 

Proceeds from the event will support that nonprofit as well as the American Kidney Fund, chosen by the police contenders, and the firefighters’ pick, the Children’s Hospital Foundation. General admission is $75, with VIP ringside seats available for $150.

“A lot of people are excited,” said Liz Cane, CEO of River City Promotions, which has been putting together fights in the area for three years. “Of course, I've had maybe two people that are like, ‘Oh, wow, we want to see the police get beat,’ and, like, this is not what it's about.”

What it is about, said firefighter and boxer Shalin Shah, is giving back to the city they serve. After college and a stint with Henrico County’s fire department, he’s been working for his hometown for four years. He’s currently assigned to Truck Company 6 and Fire Station 14 in North Side.

“I love being a city fireman,” he said. “I love the city. And then I had a passion for boxing, and I really enjoyed that in my free time, and I made a lot of friends through that, including Eric.”

Eric is Eric Ash, Cane’s husband and the owner of Vintage Boxing Gym, where Shah has trained for the past year. After practice one day, Shah took Ash aside and told him how he had seen police and firefighters box for charity in Wichita and New York City. Plans to bring these fights to Richmond took off from there. The Richmond Firefighters Association and Richmond Coalition of Police unions then helped Shah find potential boxers, and five men from each service branch signed on. Next came training, which began in June.

“Most of the people who are participating had no prior experience at all, and [their preparation is] credit to Eric,” Shah said. “He let us use the gym and offered free training for months to get everybody prepared for the event.”

“When they first came in,” Cane said about the boxers, “they were kind of nervous, didn't know what they were getting into. And now they're all about it. They're in the gym all the time. It's so much fun.”

More fights could be on the way. Shah said he had to turn away servicemembers from other localities so that he could focus on an event exclusively benefiting Richmond.

“Absolutely, down the line I would include public safety from all around the metro area,” he said. “I think the interest is there, and I think the organization is there with public safety in the region, and with the help of Vintage and Eric and Liz, I think that we definitely have the tools and frame of reference of what it takes to put on an event like this.”

The event has the backing of the higher-ups, too. In a joint statement, Fire Chief Jeffrey Segal and Police Chief Rick Edwards each praised the fighters’ dedication and the charitable nature of the event. Shah said both are planning to attend.

“They've been really supportive,” he added. “But it was really through the unions and the people on the ground that made it happen. And credit to all the members of the police department and fire department that gave up their free time to train and participate in something like this because, at the end of the day, we wouldn't be able to put something like this on without them and their hard work.”