Dusty Harrison, 17-Year-Old Signs With Golden Boy

By Ryan Maquiñana

Welterweight prospect Dusty Harrison, the youngest fighter in America at 17 years old, has signed with Golden Boy Promotions, per his father Buddy, who is also his trainer and manager.

Harrison (2-0) will make his debut with the promotional giant in his hometown of Washington, D.C., when he fights an opponent to be determined on the Amir Khan-Lamont Peterson undercard at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.

Initially, Harrison was slated to fight in San Jose this August on the Marcos Maidana-Robert Guerrero undercard, but the event fell apart after Guerrero sustained a shoulder injury.

Harrison was subsequently denied a license to fight in Virginia due to his age, but has since received a waiver to fight on the Dec. 10 show.

“It feels great,” the fighter’s father said.  “D.C. gave him an exception to fight.  I almost had tears in my eyes when [Golden Boy CEO] Richard Schaefer announced Dusty would be on the card.”

“The wait between fights was longer than I expected, but I’m just excited to fight here at home,” said Dusty, who is currently a senior at Thomas Stone High School. “My classmates are telling me they're all coming to watch me fight, and it’s exciting knowing my family and friends will be able to come, too.”

Partially due to his Puerto Rican heritage on his mother’s side, Harrison cited former Boricua world champion Felix Trinidad as his favorite fighter.

“Trinidad fought everyone, and that’s who I want to be like one day,” the teenager said.  “I’m really not afraid to fight anybody, and I’m just ready for whoever my opponent is on December 10th.”

Ryan Maquiñana is the boxing correspondent at Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America, and Ring Magazine’s Ratings Advisory Panel.  E-mail him at rmaquinana@gmail.com, check out his blog at www.maqdown.com or follow him on Twitter: @RMaq28.