Sport
27 August, 2025
Richmond counting down the days until fight night
The Richmond Outback Rumble will be held on September 13.
Richmond is hoping to build on the success of recent North West fight nights, hosting its own sanctioned boxing tournament on Saturday, September 13.
It is the first time locals can remember a fight night being held in the town, with strong support already coming in from the business community, local council and residents to make the event a success.
The night is the brainchild of former pro boxer Maks Chylewski, who has built up a successful boxing gym in the town in recent years, which sees a host of young fighters travel for tournaments across the state.
Maks said the “Richmond Outback Rumble” would allow local fighters to step into the ring in front of a home crowd for the first time, with at least five youngsters preparing for the event.
“The boys have been training hard for the night – we were away at an event at Mackay on the weekend and our two fighters walked away with two wins – so they will well and truly be ready to put on a good show come September 13,” he said.
Nominations for the Boxing Queensland-sanctioned amateur event close on August 31. Maks said he was hoping to host about 20 fights on the card.
He said there had been strong interest from clubs in Cairns, Townsville, Emerald and Cloncurry to attend.
“We travel over to their events all the time, so we are encouraging them to come out our way and experience a bit of country hospitality,” he said.
“We are hoping if we get a good response from this night we could hold similar events in the future.”
Boxing tournaments are seeing a much-welcomed resurgence in the North West, with the Richmond event following on from a well-attended fight night by Brothers in Arms in Mount Isa in May.
Maks said he hoped his event would provide an enjoyable night out for old fight fans and may even attract some newcomers to the sweet science.
“Some people still think of boxing as a bit of a blood sport, but we are hoping events like this will raise the general interest and the profile of boxing across the region,” he said.
The event will also feature an auction with former Broncos captain Justin Hodges in attendance, as well as two exhibition fights featuring Ergon Energy workers, which will raise money for the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
The Richmond Outback Fight Night will be held at the Richmond Racecourse. Tickets are available at the door, costing $20 for adults and $10 for under 18s.