UTA Venue Attracts Visitors to Downtown Arlington

UTA event hosts Bud Light Pro Boxing Series

Boxing is among the growing list of events hosted at downtown Arlington venues that compliment the nearby pro sports stadiums.

Local fighters entered the ring Friday at the University of Texas at Arlington's year-old College Park Center for the Bud Light Pro Boxing Series.

"[College Park Center] is probably the No. 1 venue for boxing in the whole state of Texas," said Dustin Haney, president of Standing 8 Promotions, which is organizing the event. "It's beautiful venue -- state-of-the-art and there's not a bad seat in the house."

Last year, ESPN's Friday Night Fights paid the city a visit.

The venue compliments the nearby Cowboys Stadium and Rangers Ballpark in Arlington and helps boost the growing list of restaurants, bars and shops that are making downtown home.

"[College Park Center] is bringing in new acts and new types of events," said Tony Rutigliano, Downtown Arlington Management Corp. CEO. "They've already had boxing there before. They've had Kansas -- they're playing Division I [college] basketball. It's our mini American Airlines [Center]. That's how valuable it is for us."

Rutgliano said that the venues around downtown -- Levitt Pavillion, Capital Bar, Arlington Music Hall -- bring people to the downtown area who may not know about all the new offerings

"We have lots of great venues, lots of great entertainment in downtown Arlington," he said.

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