Jermell Charlo: ‘I’m with Al Haymon and Golden Boy, I Have the Best of Both Worlds’

    0
    1524

    006-Charlo-vs-Rosado-victory-IMG_4012These are uncertain times for Golden Boy Promotions. Just this past year, the company,  named after owner Oscar De La Hoya, was considered the leading promotional company in boxing with the most exciting young stable in the sport. Now, it seems as though their future is a bit uncertain and the state of the company as it pertains to the talent is in a state of peril.

    Al Haymon is making a play of his own and that has left a vast majority of his fighters that were known to fight under the Golden Boy banner in an uncertain position. It would seem like all the time, money, and effort Golden Boy used to build Haymon fighters was done so in vain because they will likely fight under a different promotion in 2015.

    There are some confusing aspects and it isn’t clear which fighters will jump right away and which fighters will continue to fight for GBP before being weaned off and onto another ship.

    However, a few Haymon fighters remained signed to Golden Boy under long-term contracts.

    One of those fighters is Houston resident Jermell Charlo, who is scheduled to fight for his first world title in December when he takes on Demetrius Andrade for a junior middleweight title.

    Charlo is part of a small portion of Haymon fighters that is signed to Golden Boy, but he signed with Haymon just this past year and was already with Golden Boy, which explains why the situation is the way it is. While some might see that as a complicated scenario, but Charlo sees it as the best of both worlds.

    “I’m with Al Haymon, I signed with Al Haymon at the beginning of 2014. I felt that I needed a little more help and that I needed to go a different route. I am with Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions, I’ve been with them for about seven years now. I’m with Al Haymon, I’m with Oscar. I got the best of both worlds to me,” Charlo said.

    Jermell appears to be excited about a future with both De La Hoya and Haymon. Charlo is even more enthusiastic since De La Hoya took over at the helm in place of former CEO Richard Schaefer.

    “Thank God that Oscar has stepped up to the plate and said he wanted to start working business, it just opened me up with a lot of different things. I know there is a lot going on in boxing, but my job is just to be a fighter and stay focused in the ring and the gym.”

    Even with Charlo being signed to a lengthy contract, he is happy with Golden Boy and wouldn’t leave the company even if he could.

    “That’s years from now (in regards to his contract expiration), I can’t predict the future. [Golden Boy] has treated me well.

    There has been a lot of discussion over the past few months about Golden Boy and Al Haymon with the subject of race as the focal point. Some say that Haymon has shown a favoritism towards African American fighters, while others have criticized Golden Boy for how they handle their non-Latino fighters.

    There is no real basis for these criticisms on either side and it is probably a tactic used by both De La Hoya and Haymon to lure other fighters away from their current situation.

    Jermell has had to deal with these accusations, but his own personal experience with Golden Boy proves that race isn’t a factor in the Golden Boy business model.

    “I know it’s a big thing about how they feel about black fighters and I hear a lot of people talking about this and that, but they’ve treated me well. I wish things could’ve been a little bit different, but I have no control over it and I’m finally getting my opportunity.”