Three signs hang from the mezzanine of Toronto’s elegant Arcadian Court ballroom. The first reads, “Punch her in the face.” Another has a picture of Zach Morris and the text, “Only I get Saved By The Bell.” The third, “Sting like a Killa Bee,” is a reference to Dentsubos creative manager Ruth “Killa Bee” Cagara, who is in a boxing ring below swinging her fist at an opponent.
Cagara is one of 24 ad agency staffers who took part in Agency Wars III, an annual charity boxing event. Founded in 2010 by Brandworks creative director Michael Clancy, Agency Wars has become a fixture on the industry calendar. This year’s event, which raised money for Ronald McDonald House and the National Advertising Benevolent Society, attracted a sell-out crowd of 600 Wednesday night.
Andrea Agopian (Grip Ltd.) vs. Melyssa Wright (PHD Canada)
In the 12 weeks leading up to Agency Wars, the boxers are split into two teams – red and blue – and undergo an intense training and conditioning program with three professional coaches. That all leads up to six minutes of glory in the ring, where the boxers receive the full pro athlete treatment, from booming intro music to a tuxedo-clad announcer (Marketing’s Jeromy Lloyd) and cameras following their ascent into the ring. The Fight Network, which filmed the event organized by Clancy and Kristina Ejem of K Jem Productions, is set to air a two-hour special complete with fighter bios, interview clips and play-by-play analysis from ringside commentators.
Cagara, in blue, awaits the decision
“It’s a real professional boxing event and it’s something they can keep for life,” said Fight Network general manager Anthony Cicone. “Obviously they don’t have the technique and the style, but no doubt they all have heart. This is something they’ve worked really hard at. Once they get into there they want that hard work to pay off so they try to put on a good show.”
In the event’s backstage area, boxers stand in a hallway in robes as they prep for their bouts, listening to earbuds and punching the air as they bounce from foot to foot, battling imaginary opponents. Clancy ducks out of the ringside chaos into a commandeered kitchen a few metres from where the boxers are gearing up for their matches. He said he’s thrilled with the scale Agency Wars has grown to. “I’m blown away by how enthusiastic people are. There are 600 people in there screaming their heads off for their people in the ring. It’s electric. It’s an amazing atmosphere,” he said.
Back in the ballroom, empty drinks are stacking up on the tabletops and the crowd is getting louder. In the back corner, one table is covered with giant blue and white paper boxing gloves with the words, “Shots shots shots shots shots” – props made by Brandworks to support one of their fighters, Jennifer “Big Shots” Watts. When the ref makes a call they don’t like, ringside fans jeer. They scream from the second floor mezzanine, “Take his lunch money!” and “Punch her in the throat!” One fan, Gaggi Media planner/buyer Jodi Correia, holds a beer in one hand and a sign reading, “Mess With The Bull, You Get The Horn,” and has a picture of her sister – Baylie “The Bull” Langelier of PHD Canada – with a pair of bull horns drawn on her head.
The night’s first winner, Innocean Worldwide Canada’s Jenny Kim, describes the feeling in the ring as a kind of tunnel vision focused on her opponent’s face. She’s shaking with excitement and dripping with sweat. “When I hit her squarely in the face the first time, and I saw the fear in her eyes. Honestly, it got me so hungry for more,” she said. “ I was like: this is it. I’m going to get her.”
Blue Team coach Natalie Brown with boxer Andrea Agopian
After the bout, Kim joins the rest of the crowd. “I want a beer right now!” She said. “We’re going out partying tonight. No more teams, just fighters. We’re all going to go drink and have a good time.”
