Fighters Factory Blackburn: Rising rent forces boxing gym to close after 27 years

A Blackburn boxing gym where some of Australia’s best fighters trained is the latest Covid business casualty, with rising rent costs shutting its doors.

A popular boxing gym in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs where five-time world champion Lester Ellis once trained has been knocked to the canvas thanks to rising rent and a drop in numbers.

The Fighters Factory, founded by Murray Thomson in 1996, has become the latest Covid-19 business casualty, closing after an emotional final session on Monday.

More than 100 past and present members of the gym came down for its final session to salute Thomson for his work running the business and raising the sport’s profile in the community.

“It was a very emotional day, we couldn’t run a proper circuit because there were too many people,” Thomson said.

“There were fighters there that fought for me 20 years ago, it was very emotional.”

After first training boxers in his mother’s garage in the early 90s, Thomson started his gym in Boronia in 1996, before he moved to a space behind the old Nunawading Skate Ranch in 1998.

He used facilities there for just over a year before moving to a space in the heart of Blackburn Village, near the roundabout of Blackburn and Railway roads, in 1999.

Among the athletes who were trained by Thomson and came through his gym were Ellis, former Australian and Oceania welterweight champion Julian Holland and former world No. 11 Wale Omotoso.

The Covid-19 pandemic played a major role in the gym’s demise, with numbers dwindling from about 100 people visiting per day to 25-30 people after restrictions eased.

“The special thing about our gym is we never ran it professionally,” Thomson said.

“We used to train hard and go home, there were no egos, and we attracted down to earth people who just wanted to work out.”

“But the rent just keeps going up, the business was going all over the place and there’s a huge amount of people who are struggling.”

Murray Thomson (centre) with teenage fighters Oswald Hughes, Angus Napier, Jackson Bell, Pradipto Roy and Sonny Bell, in 2019. Picture: Sarah Matray

Along with running the gym, Thomson was a boxing promoter who staged professional and amateur events at venues including the Knox Netball Centre, Box Hill Town Hall and the Rowville Community Centre.

It was through these events he helped some of the emerging boxers training at his gym get competition experience.

“Nine out of the 11 fighters on the card would be Fighter Factory fighters,” Thomson said.

“They (younger members) used to walk around proud as punch, it gave them confidence and an outlet.

“Not everyone can play footy, basketball or team sports, boxing is a unique individual sport.”

Thomson was supported by trainer Tommy Oates in the gym’s final years, who said the gym’s closure was a huge loss for the community and its members.

“There’s a hole in the community now, it’s a family here, everyone’s now going to go their separate ways and you’re not going to see them again,” he said.

“Murray’s been here for years and what he’s done for Blackburn should be rewarded.

“He shouldn’t be having his livelihood taken off him … he should be getting a lot more help from what he’s been given.”

Mr Thomson said he would be looking at hosting personal training sessions at his home with the gym now closed.

“I probably won’t go into hiring another factory out … it’s too risky and the economics don’t add up,” he said.

But the despite the crushing blow of winding up the gym, Thomson said he had many lasting memories from the people he worked with which he would treasure.

“We’ve had so many kids come through here, it’s amazing,” he said.

“One thing I loved was there were so many times we had girls here, they were pregnant and punching the bag.

“Years and years later the kids would come back training, and I’d say, ‘I’ve known you since you’ve been in your mum’s belly.

“It’s been amazing and thankyou to everyone who supported us and accepted us for how we were.”