by David P. Greisman
Dusty Hernandez-Harrison, the welterweight prospect who will be headlining Roc Nation’s first boxing show, has signed a promotional contract with Jay-Z’s company.
“We went up there and met with all of them and dealt with them. They treat us great,” Hernandez-Harrison said. “They’re good people, especially the ones we interact with the most. You’re not really dealing with Jay-Z, but I’ve been dealing with Michael Yormark [Roc Nation’s president and chief of branding and strategy], David Itskowitch [its chief operating officer for boxing], they’ve just been treating us great.
“The other thing about Roc Nation, they may not have the track record of moving boxers, obviously, but boxing is just as much about making money outside of the ring,” Hernandez-Harrison said. “I think they can do that better than anybody, with the connections they have in music, baseball, basketball, football. We thought about that a lot, too. … It’s easy for a boxer to keep fighting. They’ll put me in lots of good positions outside of the ring.”
Hernandez-Harrison, a 20-year-old who is 24-0 with 13 KOs, will face Tommy Rainone (22-5-1, 4 KOs) on Jan. 9 at Madison Square Garden in a show that will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1.
“They want to keep me busy like I’ve been,” Hernandez-Harrison said. “Lots of fights. Big fights. Obviously they got that deal with Fox Sports. I don’t’know if they plan on me being on all of them, but I can’t imagine why not. They want to keep me busy. That was a good thing for us. Outside of the ring, even this fight, they have some pretty good plans for us.”
Among the thrills he’s already had: seeing footage of a billboard featuring him.
“I haven’t had that done before for a fight,” he said. “It’s good to be a part of it.”
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