Hearn made a clear distinction between the two. In his view, Berlanga chose a money lane that fits his ceiling, while Hitchins arrived there after running out of alternatives.
On Berlanga, Hearn was blunt about both the opportunity and the limitation.
“I don’t think he’s necessarily going to win world championships, but financially this is a good opportunity for him,” Hearn said to Fight Hub TV.
Berlanga, 28, has essentially become a high-level gatekeeper or a special attraction fighter. He can still make good money, but the days of being gifted unearned shots at the undisputed king for eight-figure checks are likely over. He’s at a total career reset point.
The stats from that Sheeraz fight are brutal. Berlanga was dropped three times before being waved off in the fifth in that fight last July. When you lose back-to-back high-profile fights to Canelo and then Sheeraz and get stopped in the second one, that unbeaten power puncher marketing strategy is dead and buried.
Traditional promoters like Matchroom or Top Rank likely wouldn’t touch Berlanga at his previous price tag because he’s proven he can’t beat the top tier at 168.
“He’s not going to beat the top guys at 168. Come on,” Hearn said of Berlanga.
Hearn’s comment is the boxing version of “saying the quiet part out loud.” It’s a brutal reality check, but when you look at the scene of the 168-pound division, it’s hard to argue he’s wrong.
By saying “Come on,” Hearn is basically dismissing the marketing hype that he himself helped build when he was trying to sell the Canelo fight. It shows that even the people who promoted Berlanga didn’t actually believe he belonged with the elite.
Hearn revealed a situation where options disappeared one by one for Hitchins. Matchroom withdrew. Other promoters showed little interest. The negotiating stance taken before his last fight didn’t help.
“We withdrew our offer. Top Rank wasn’t an option, and Golden Boy wasn’t really an option,” Hearn said.
“They tried to be smart, then we were done,” said about Team Hitchins.
By saying “We withdrew our offer,” Hearn is signaling that he didn’t even want to go back and forth anymore. He felt the difference between what Hitchins wanted and what he was worth was too wide to bridge.
When Top Rank and Golden Boy also passed, it proved Hearn’s point. If the biggest players in the game aren’t bidding for you, you’re a misfit.
Hearn is basically calling out Richardson Hitchins and his team for fumbling the bag. In boxing circles, “trying to be smart” is promoter-speak for a fighter overestimating their market value and asking for money or terms that their ticket-selling power doesn’t justify.
“If you care about your legacy and you want to be great, don’t take it,” Hearn said.
Hearn’s comment is a direct shot at the Zuffa Boxing business model and what it means for a fighter’s autonomy. In the traditional boxing world, “greatness” is often measured by a fighter’s ability to navigate the rankings, pick up belts from the four major sanctioning bodies (WBC, WBA, IBF, WBO), and eventually become undisputed.
By saying “don’t take it,” Hearn is arguing that signing with Zuffa is effectively trading your “legacy” for a “paycheck” in a closed system.
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