{"id":243806,"date":"2025-11-04T18:42:08","date_gmt":"2025-11-04T18:42:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/243806\/"},"modified":"2025-11-04T18:42:08","modified_gmt":"2025-11-04T18:42:08","slug":"hitchins-backs-haney-to-expose-norman-jr-nov-22","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/243806\/","title":{"rendered":"Hitchins Backs Haney To Expose Norman Jr. Nov 22"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Elliot Raines: Richardson Hitchins says that he realized that Brian Norman Jr. is not on his level during their undated sparring session. He predicts that Devin Haney will defeat Norman Jr. (28-0, 22 KOs) to dethrone him of his WBO welterweight title this month on November 22nd in their chief support fight in Riyadh.<\/p>\n

Haney Amplifies Hitchins\u2019 Claims on X<\/p>\n

Haney amplified a Hitchins interview today on X in which he bragged about his success sparring with Hitchins, talked up his 2016 Olympic experience, and predicted that he \u201ccan\u2019t beat Devin\u201d. He also repeatedly said that Norman Jr. \u201cisn\u2019t on my level.\u201d<\/p>\n

How Hitchins Ended Up on Haiti\u2019s 2016 Team<\/p>\n

What was interesting about the interview was how the Brooklyn, New York-born Hitchins boasted about his participation in the 2016 Olympics. What he left out in his how took part. He was beaten by Gary Antuanne Russell during the U.S Olympic trials and failed to make the team. Hitchins then switched over to Haiti and made it on their team, which was significantly weaker than the U.S. during the 2016 Olympics.<\/p>\n

So, Hitchins did compete in the Olympics that year, but he had to join a weaker team to make it because Gary Antuanne Russell had eliminated him. That was the first of four losses that Hitchins suffered at the hands of Russell, who owned him in the amateur ranks with a perfect 4-0 record.<\/p>\n

Some fans would argue that Gary Antuanne\u2019s domination of Hitchins is the sole reason why he has shown no interest in fighting him for a unification at 140. It\u2019s a natural fight to make, given that both fighters hold world titles at light welterweight. Hitchins, however, hasn\u2019t shown any ambition to face Russell. Now, why is that?<\/p>\n

\u201cThe sparring, he was not on my level. He was strong. You could tell he was strong with natural ability and quick reactions. But as far as boxing skills, it wasn\u2019t a puzzle for me. It wasn\u2019t nothing to find out,\u201d said Richardson Hitchins to the 10-8 podcast<\/a>, talking about his sparring with Brian Norman Jr.<\/p>\n

\u201cAtlanta, Georgia, isn\u2019t a big boxing city. Brian Norman\u2019s not a guy that I heard about in the amateurs. You could tell he\u2019s a dedicated fighter to his craft. But when it comes to natural abilities with the pedigree that I got being in the Olympics, being around guys like Shakur since I was a young kid, facing guys like \u2018Boots\u2019 and Gary [Anguanne Russell], it was a whole different level [than Norman Jr.].<\/p>\n

Amateur Record Tells a Different Story<\/p>\n

Hitchins\u2019 record as an amateur was a lowly\u00a037-12 compared to Brian Norman Jr\u2019s\u00a012-1. The difference is that Norman Jr. chose to turn pro after two years in the amateurs in 2016 \u2013 2017. Richardson stayed in the amateurs for three years from 2013 to 2016.<\/p>\n

Notable Fighters Hitchins Lost to the Amateurs<\/p>\n

Gary Antuanne Russell: X 4
\nJaron Ennis x 2
\nVergil Ortiz Jr
\nJamaine Ortiz
\nAbraham Nova
\nPat McCormack<\/p>\n

Hitchins never beat any notable fighters during his amateur career. He lost all the notable fighters he faced, and his wins came against obscure fighters exclusively.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou could tell that he\u2019s just not on that level. You could see it in his previous fights, and you\u2019re going to see it [against Haney]. I got a lot to say about Devin Haney, but I really don\u2019t think Brian Norman is on that level. Just because his daddy is talking s***, I got to tell the truth. No, you can\u2019t beat Devin Haney,\u201d said Hitchins.<\/p>\n

It would be helpful if Hitchins mentioned when he sparred Norman Jr. Given his age, 28, compared to the 24-year-old Norman Jr., it would be interesting to know if the sparring occurred when Brian Jr. was a teenager.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou Can\u2019t Beat Devin Haney,\u201d Says Hitchins<\/p>\n

\u201cAt first, I was cool with Brian Norman Jr. \u2018I think you can beat Devin Haney.\u2019 Now since your dad is talking, I ain\u2019t going to like. You can\u2019t beat Devin Haney. So, now he\u2019s got to shut me up. I\u2019m betting on you, Devin. You better beat [Norman Jr.],\u201d said Hitchins.<\/p>\n

Elliot Raines has covered British and European boxing since 2010. Known for his sharp pen and low tolerance for hype, Raines dissects the sport\u2019s politics, promoters, and paper champions with dry precision.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Elliot Raines: Richardson Hitchins says that he realized that Brian Norman Jr. is not on his level…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":243807,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[2560,87466,6572,102318,21968,6573,102317,27256,29915,87465,101,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-243806","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-boxing","8":"tag-boxing","9":"tag-coliseo-roberto-clemente","10":"tag-eddie-hearn","11":"tag-keith-connolly","12":"tag-liam-paro","13":"tag-matchroom-boxing","14":"tag-melina-pizano","15":"tag-puerto-rico","16":"tag-richardson-hitchins","17":"tag-san-juan","18":"tag-sports","19":"tag-uk","20":"tag-united-kingdom","21":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243806","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=243806"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243806\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/243807"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=243806"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=243806"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=243806"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}