A lawsuit filed in the Eastern District Court of Michigan reveals a boxing promoter suing his former fighter in a breach of contract lawsuit. Shohjahon Ergashev was sued by Dmitry Salita as a result of taking a fight outside of his contract with Salita Promotions. Also involved in the lawsuit was Ergashev’s manager.
According to a report from boxing writer Sean Nam, MTK Global is now handling the career of the 140-pound, undefeated Russian. Currently, there is a lawsuit between MTK Global over the career of Jojo Diaz by his former manager.
The lawsuit centers around Ergashev fighting in the main event on a card last September in Russia which was done without the involvement of his promoter. Salita Promotions obtained a Temporary Restraining Order preventing the fight from happening. In an opinion, rife with boxing references, the Court granted the TRO.
Salita argues that the match was not set up with the knowledge of Salita Promotions. The promoter claims that he had offered his client fights, which he turned down.
The plaintiff also claims that Ergoshev requested that his manager reach out to other promoters.
Notably, the promotional contract with Ergashev features step-up purses with minimum purses for each type of bout.
The contract includes a provision which give the promoter the “exclusive right to secure and arrange all bouts…requiring Fighter’s service and to secure, arrange and promote all such Bouts…”
The Agreement carries an initial term of five (5) years with tow separate option to renew for two additional one-year periods (thus, a total of 7 years in all if exercised). It also carries a “champions clause” which extends the period of the contract 2 years
These clauses are central to Ergashev’s legal arguments to dismiss the case. His attorneys first claim that the court lacks jurisdiction over the dispute. Ergashev and his manager are both Russian. While the promotional contract avails jurisdiction in Michigan, if his attorneys argue the contract is void, then there is no jurisdiction since both are residents of another country. Moreover, Salita Promotions is a company originating in New York. Further, the fight contract violates the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act which serves as a protection to the health and safety of boxers. They also call out the promoter’s agreement for being “illegal and illusory.”
Ergashev’s attorney points out a conflict for Salita Promotions. Essentially, if the promoter loses a purse bid, he must still pay Salita 25% of his purse which would seem to negate a promoter’s motivation to win a purse bid on behalf of his fighter. It also points to a table of “purses” that they argue the promoter can unilaterally change.
Payout Perspective:
The lawsuit reflects the ongoing battle between fighter and manager versus promoter. Certainly, a promoter’s job is to invest in a fighter to promote their fights. The problem has been that some managers and promoters have been taking advantage of boxers. This case will be interesting to see how it plays out. There is the issue of the contract being void weighed against a promoter’s right to enforce a contract. Ergashev argues that the contract was one-sided and against the Ali Act since it allowed the promoter to collect a percentage of a purse from the boxer even if he did not win a purse bid. Moreover, he claims that the promoter can change terms without negotiating with the fighter. One has to think that Ergashev’s new management group looked at the contract and saw ways they could challenge it in court. MPO will continue to follow.
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