Promoter Eddie Hearn says Edgar Berlanga may be making the “worst decision” by choosing to leave Matchroom and become a free agent after his contract ends this Saturday, March 15th, with his fight against Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz.
(Credit: Melina Pizano/Matchroom)
Some fans believe Berlanga thinks he’s going to get scooped up by Turki Alalshikh’s TKO boxing promotion and paid gazillions. That may not happen.
Free Agent Risks
Hearn states that what the super middleweight contender Berlanga (22-1, 17 KOs) thinks he will get signing with another promoter may not be the kind of money he thinks he will get. He believes he’s going to get huge dough, and that may not happen.
The problem is that Berlanga, 27, has become spoiled after the massive payday he got fighting Canelo Alvarez last September, and he believes that fight showed what he’s worth. He hadn’t been forced to fight any of the dangerous super middleweights during his career to get that fight, and he performed poorly, not even trying to win until the 12th round. By then, Berlanga appeared to have lost every round and he needed a knockout.
“By the way, free agent can be the worst decision in the world, because if you have opinions of what you should be earning, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to walk into a fight,” said Eddie Hearn to Thaboxingvoice about Edgar Berlanga believing he’s going to get a great deal as a free agent after he leaves Matchroom following his final fight of his contract ends this Saturday against Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz.
Weight Problems
Any promoter with a brain must know that Berlanga’s future looks dim. Due to his huge size, he’s not likely to continue fighting at super middleweight for much longer, if at all. He’s not talented enough to thrive at light heavyweight against fighters his size. That’s where he should be fighting now, not at 168.
He failed to make weight for his fight against Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz, coming in 1.6 lbs over the limit, and he looked like he was on death’s door at the weigh-in for his fight against Canelo last September. He reportedly rehydrated to 193 lbs for that fight, a whopping 25 lbs.
“The best thing you can have is security for regular fights for the right money, and that’s what he had with us,” said Hearn about Berlanga. “He’s not going to struggle to get a fight. He can get the [Caleb] Plant fight. He can get the [Jermall] Charlo fight.”
Berlanga can definitely get a fight against Plant. I’m not sure about Jermall Charlo. That would depend on whoever signs him. Jermall would likely expect a goldmine to get him back in the ring.
Berlanga’s Value
“Obviously, we would love the [Diego] Pacheco fight, but he might not get the money that he thought those fights were worth,” continued Hearn about Berlanga. “In Edgar’s mind, those fights are worth a huge amount of money and they’re big draw fights. Can it be resolved? From my side, 100%. We can have a coffee now and resolve it, but Edgr has got to come to terms.
“I think Edgar has beaten himself up about the situation instead of going, ‘I get it. It didn’t work out the Puerto Rico fight, but they’re doing what they promised. Let’s just do the fight [Gonzalez-Ortiz] and move on.’ I never think it’s too late to move forward.
“The reality is, wherever the best deal is, he’ll go. We may not make an offer or we may make an offer and he may sign with us. He may get a better offer,” said Hearn about Berlanga.
