Boxing

Champion Boxer Opens Up About 'Toxic Relationship' With Floyd Mayweather Promotion

Boxing standout Richardson Hitchins sent a scathing message about his time working with Floyd Mayweather.
Grant Young|
Dec 7, 2023; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Floyd Mayweather Jr. sits court side during the third quarter of the NBA In Season Tournament Semifinal between the Indiana Pacers and the Milwaukee Bucks at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
Dec 7, 2023; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Floyd Mayweather Jr. sits court side during the third quarter of the NBA In Season Tournament Semifinal between the Indiana Pacers and the Milwaukee Bucks at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Current IBF world super lightweight champion Richardson Hitchins (who boasts a perfect 19-0 record with 7 KOs) is defending his belt against George Kambosos Jr. at the Madison Square Garden Theater in New York City, New York, on June 14.

Hitchins has cemented himself as one of the top young talents in the sport of boxing, as he always seems to perform when he's put on the biggest stage. However, despite his talent, Hitchins isn't as big of a name as many of his peers and close friends (such as Gervonta "Tank" Davis and Shakur Stevenson). Some believe this is owed to how he was handled by Mayweather Promotions, which is a boxing promotional firm that was founded by the legendary Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2007.

Hitchins signed with Matchroom Boxing promotions in 2022 after spending the first five years of his professional career with Mayweather Promotions. And during his June 11 appearance on the Ring Champs With Ak & Barak podcast, Hitchins got honest about his ugly divorce from Mayweather's promotional company.

"Last conversation me and Floyd had was like, he was trying to get me to re-sign with him, because I asked Leonard [Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions] to let me go. I wasn't happy with how my career was going, and [Mayweather] came to me to try to tell me, you know, like 'Let's keep working,'" Hitchins said.

"But I already been there, done that. It was like a toxic relationship," he added.

Hitchins went on to discuss how several of his peers were blowing up in terms of stardom while he was staying stagnant under Mayweather, which he attributes to not being positioned on big-time fight cards from the pandemic to when he left Mayweather Promotions and signed with Matchroom in 2022.

It sounds like Hitchins clearly made the correct decision when it comes to leaving Mayweather Promotions behind.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young is a Staff Writer for On SI’s Boxing, New York Mets, Indiana Fever, and Women’s Fastbreak sites. Before joining SI in 2024, he wrote for various boxing and sports verticals such as FanBuzz and NY Fights. Young has a bachelor’s degree in marketing and a master’s degree in creative writing with an emphasis on sports nonfiction from the University of San Francisco, where he played five seasons of Division 1 baseball. He fought Muay Thai professionally in Thailand in 2023, loves a good essay, and is driven crazy trying to handle a pitpull puppy named Aura. Young lives in San Diego and was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.