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just giving it to them for free and they’re not showing up and performing. “The character of the fighter has definitely changed. I just think these guys are a lot softer than what they were in the past. A lot of these guys just want, want, want, want, but they’re not willing to give the sport something to be excited about.” Eddie Hearn, who promoted many of Haney’s fights and co-promoted Garcia’s fight with Luke Campbell, says too much money can spoil a young fighter’s desire.
It was the late, great Marvin Hagler who said it’s tough to get out of bed to do roadwork at 5 a.m. when you’ve been sleeping in silk pajamas. Bradley knows firsthand. “The more money I did make over the course of my career – especially in the later half – the less and less I fought … [and] I became lazier. I’m not going to lie. I definitely became lazier because I’m a millionaire. I got money … Everything is all fine and dandy. You start doing less and less as you move forward. It’s kind of natural. You have
like crap. Similar to what Canelo did, similar to what Ryan Garcia did … even Devin Haney. These guys are not hungry, man. They’re not hungry to prove anything, because they already got everything.” Co-host Steve Kim brought up the Marvelous One’s adage: “So, you’re talking about the old Marvin Hagler silk pajamas.” Hagler was indeed living large during the final stretch of his career. He was guaranteed $10 million vs. Thomas Hearns and $12 million vs.
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Sugar Ray Leonard, who was guaranteed $11 million for their 1987 superfight. Eight-figure purses in 1980s money! Adjusted for inflation, ole Silk Pajamas was making close to $30 million for The Hitman and $33.7 million for Sugar Ray. And yet those classic showdowns earned The Ring’s Fight of the Year honors. Leonard, the darling of the 1976 Olympics, commanded eight-figure purses in the prime of his career, scoring $10 million for his first bouts with Duran and Hearns (which would be in the $35-$40 million range today). The 1981 showdown with Hearns was The Ring’s Fight of the Year. The Brawl in Montreal was the 1980 FOTY runner-up.
Leonard made $13 million for the rematch with Hearns, who made $11 million. They were “faded” veterans but fought their asses off for 12 rounds. My heroes (as well as Steve’s and Timmy’s) did not suffer from complacency.
For Hagler and Hearns, money was secondary to the glory.
“There’s an element of fighters being overpaid, and once you start making money, do you really want to put yourself physically in the trenches when your lifestyle is now fantastic?” Hearn said during an interview with FightHype. “I think it’s impossible to have the same warrior mindset when you’ve made a load of money and now you live in that 10-bedroom [mansion] and you’ve got three Ferraris. The [fighters] are like, ‘I don’t really want a war. Why would I want a war? No, thank you.’”
to fight through becoming complacent. “A lot of these guys are making a lot of money and they’re making a lot of money early and they’re making it fast. There’s really no sacrifice. There’s really no worry. Their second and third fight is already lined up, and it doesn’t matter if you come into the ring and perform at your greatest or perform
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Boxing with Mannix and Mora, a podcast co-hosted by DAZN broadcasters Sergio Mora and Chris Mannix, called The Ring’s super middleweight rankings into question a few days before Caleb Plant faced Jose
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