The owners of the Pontiac Silverdome are making plans for the aging football stadium’s first significant sporting event since they bought it over a year ago. But the event is more about raising the Silverdome’s profile than making a lot of money.
When a Toronto developer bought the 80 thousand seat stadium last year for about 600 thousand dollars…he said he had big plans. But during the past year…the Silverdome has played host to only minor events.
Next month, the Silverdome will host a championship boxing match that will be featured live on cable television’s HBO. It’s a chance to show the rest of the country that the Silverdome is open for business. Grant Reeves is the Silverdome’s general manager. He says the Silverdome will need a strong turnout from fight fans in the Detroit metro area.
“If the people within the DMA (Detroit Metro Area) and Great Lakes Region come out and support this boxing match…you’ll see more great fights at this venue."
January’s fight card, featuring relatively little known boxers, is not expected to draw a huge crowd. The Silverdome will curtain off most of the cavernous stadium, creating a 15 thousand seat enclave for the January fight.
In its heyday in the 1980’s and early 90’s, the Pontiac Silverdome hosted many major events, from the Super Bowl to professional wrestling.
