Daniel Jacobs Inks Pact With Eddie Hearn, HBO

Daniel Jacobs is going to try to get back in the fold in the Middleweight division, and he’s going to do it without the help of power broker Al Haymon for the immediate future. Jacobs, who was last seen taking a disputed loss against Gennady Golovkin in March, will be working exclusively with England’s Eddie Hearn with his next three fights to be televised by HBO, starting with a yet-to-be-announced card in New York this Fall.

The Middleweight division isn’t exactly a hotbed of talent among Haymon’s stable, with the only real option for Jacobs being Jermall Charlo or moving up to Super Middleweight to fight James DeGale. Signing with Hearn and HBO gives Jacobs a much better chance at landing the Golovkin rematch as well as being an outside, but heavily unlikely option for Saul Alvarez in the near future. Interestingly enough, long forgotten former Junior Middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade will also make his annual appearance on HBO as well, leaving Andrade as a potential foe.

Hearn is emerging as one of the sport’s most effective promoters with his ability to fluidly work with any promoter to make fights in the UK and the US. Hearn’s work with Anthony Joshua and Kell Brook have made him the UKs premier promoter, and he may hope to break into the American market with Jacobs who only saw his stock sharply climb after the Golovkin loss.

Either way, the announcement serves as a significant acquisition for the talent starved HBO, who is rapidly losing their influence as boxing continues their journey out of the shadows, leaving their future in the sport doubtful at best.