The inaugural Bartenders Brawl is cancelled; knocked out by lack of referees

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Erick Doxey photo

Local bartender Kate Garrett was hoping to make her competitive boxing debut at the Dec. 21 event, which has been cancelled.

Another one bites the dust.

Lilac City Boxing Club and The Knitting Factory had to cancel Thursday's Bartenders Brawl due to a slew of official referees,  judges and time keepers backing out of the evening's fights.

There aren't many USA Boxing-registered referees in the area, and even fewer want to trek into the city for a weeknight fight so close to Christmas.

Event organizer Danny Thomas is hoping to reschedule the event sometime next year. Until then, he's working to add more local officials in the area to the to avoid this problem in the future. Safety is and always will be his first priority. For now, we'll have to take this on the chin and be ready for whatever comes next.