Al Haymon
Al Haymon (born April 21, 1955) is an American businessman and boxing manager. He was the manager to Floyd Mayweather Jr. and has won the Boxing Writers of America Manager of the Year Award a total of five times.
Early life
Haymon was raised in Cleveland, Ohio and studied economics at Harvard.[1] He also has an MBA from Harvard.
Music career
His main career start was in music promotion, where he promoted such acts as M. C. Hammer, New Edition, Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson and Mary J. Blige, and Rick James. He branched out to other entertainment areas, such as when he worked with Eddie Murphy.[1] In 1999, he sold 50% of A. H. Enterprises to SFX Entertainment.[2]
Boxing career
Around 2000, Haymon ventured into boxing when he managed Vernon Forrest.[1] Over the next decade, Haymon gained considerable influence in boxing, mainly due to his connection to Floyd Mayweather Jr.[1] In 2005 and 2013, Haymon won the Al Buck Award (Manager of the Year) from the Boxing Writers Association of America.[3][4]
Haymon founded Premier Boxing Champions, which held its first event in 2015.
Criticism and controversy
Haymon is rarely seen and never interviewed. Greg Bishop, formerly of the New York Times and now of Sports Illustrated, suggests that Haymon functions as both promoter and manager, against the principles of the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act, which was designed to separate boxing promoters from boxing managers.[1] He has also been criticized by fans and writers alike for the inactivity of many of his fighters.[by whom?]
Notable client list
Fighters who are currently or were previously represented by Haymon include:[1][5]
- Floyd Mayweather Jr.
- Tugstsogt Nyambayar
- Manny Pacquiao
- Gerald Washington
- Chris Colbert
- Adonis Stevenson
- Julio César Chávez Jr.
- Amir Khan
- Peter Quillin
- Artur Beterbiev
- Josesito López
- Hugo Centeno Jr.
- Jermell Charlo
- Jermall Charlo
- Erislandy Lara
- Cristobal Arreola
- Devon Alexander
- Adrien Broner
- Gervonta Davis
- Andre Berto
- Danny García
- Austin Trout
- Domonique Dolton
- Lamont Peterson
- Anthony Peterson
- Seth Mitchell
- Gary Russell Jr.
- Dominic Wade
- Antonio Tarver
- Sakio Bika
- Vernon Forrest
- Leonard Bundu
- Artur Szpilka
- Lamon Brewster
- Jermain Taylor
- J'Leon Love
- Omar Figueroa
- Paul Williams
- Léo Santa Cruz
- John Molina, Jr.
- Deontay Wilder
- Lucas Matthysse
- Chris Pearson
- Errol Spence Jr.
- Marcos Maidana
- Julian Williams
- Keith Thurman
- Paulie Malignaggi
- Robert Guerrero
- Shawn Porter
- Luis Collazo
- Travis Kauffman
- Rances Barthelemy
- Semajay Thomas
- Roberto García
- Kevin Bizier
- Lucian Bute
- Andre Dirrell
- Anthony Dirrell
- Andrzej Fonfara
- Carl Frampton
- Abner Mares
- Eddie Chambers
- James Degale
- Luis Ortiz
- Joe Joyce
- Andy Ruiz Jr.
References
- ^ a b c d e f "Behind the Scenes Haymon is Shaking Up the Fight Game". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^ SFX turns up urban beat - Adam Sandler, Variety, 21 May 1999
- ^ "Al Buck Award: 2005 Manager of the Year: Al Haymon". Bwaa.org. Archived from the original on 2011-08-17. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^ "BWAA Boxing Awards". bwaa.org. Archived from the original on 2013-08-30. Retrieved 2013-09-29.
- ^ Rafael, Dan (2012-10-17). "Lopez, Lara sign with Haymon - Dan Rafael Blog - ESPN". Espn.go.com. Retrieved 2012-10-21.