LAYTON -- Roller derby and mixed martial arts events held at the Davis Conference Center are giving Davis County a one-two economic punch of nearly a half-million dollars in revenue a year.
The Junction City Roller Dolls will host a Halloween-themed bout at 7 p.m. Oct. 24 at the center, with a portion of the proceeds going to Bikers Against Child Abuse, said Steven M. Ito, center sales manager.
"At their last bout, in August, we had over 500 people attend, and it keeps growing in popularity with each event," Ito said.
The roller derby is projected to generate $15,000 in economic impact revenues to the Layton area, or $45,000 for the year. This will be the third roller derby hosted at the center.
Another event scheduled at the center in Layton is Jeremy Horn's Elite Fight Night, a mixed martial arts fight beginning at 7 p.m. Oct. 30.
The event is expected to generate $50,000 to $75,000 in economic impact revenues for the county, or $450,000 for the year. The Oct. 30 event will be the fifth MMA fight the center will have hosted this year, officials said.
"It was started by a popular UFC fighter, Jeremy Horn, and they started by hosting their shows in Salt Lake City. They took a chance to do one of their shows at our facility in Layton, and now this will be their seventh fight with us," Ito said of the fight events the county started hosting about 18 months ago.
"We have an attendance of around 1,800 people, and they travel in from Provo to Brigham City.
"It's something different for Davis County."
When the center took on the sports market, it looked at events that would bring business to the center, he said.
Booking the fights, which are also regularly held in Salt Lake City, appears to be introducing a new group of visitors to Layton, Ito said.
"It brings a lot of people that have never been to Davis County or Layton," he said, adding that event attendees and participants are spending money in Layton restaurants and on local hotels.
With each fight, the Hilton Garden Inn sets aside a bloc of 10 to 12 rooms just for the out-of-state fighters participating in the event, Ito said.
Then there are the fans of the fighters who spend the night in Layton hotels, he said.
The reason the conference center is drawing good crowds for mixed martial arts fighting is because it is centrally located between Salt Lake City and Ogden. Also, the sport is experiencing growth and Layton is near Hill Air Force Base, where there appears to be a following for the sport, officials said.
The center space is also versatile, able to accommodate a dinner-dance one week and a fight the next, Ito said.
Promoters agree.
"The Davis Conference Center is exceptional to all the venues I work with," said David Putvin, promoter for the mixed martial arts events.
"We like it because it is really a nice facility."
Putvin said the organization now does four or five shows a year in Layton because of the fan base there and because of the cooperation the organization receives from those operating the center.
"They seem to have a love for mixed martial arts," he said.
The center also offers spectators a close view of the action, while the three- to four-hour fight card offers a great value to the public, Putvin said.
Tickets for the roller derby cost $10 to $12, while tickets for the mixed martial arts events cost $25 to $75.
Roller derby tickets are available at brownpapertickets.com; fight tickets are available at hornselite.com.
Comments