There was big news in the behind-the-scenes boxing world on Monday when Richard Schaefer issued a statement announcing that he is leaving his position as CEO of Golden Boy Promotions.
“After more than ten years with Golden Boy, it is time to move on to the next chapter of my career,” Schaefer said in a statement. “This decision has required a great deal of personal reflection, but ultimately I concluded that I have no choice but to leave. I have succeeded in banking and I have succeeded in boxing, and I look forward to the next opportunity. I am proud to remain a shareholder, so I have a strong interest in the continued success of the company. I am proud of what we have accomplished at Golden Boy, but I now look forward to new challenges.”
Golden Boy was started by Oscar De La Hoya in 2002 and quickly emerged as one of the biggest forces in boxing by signing some of the best talent.
Along with Bob Arum’s Top Rank, Golden Boy is one of the best and most well-known promotions in boxing, with one of the deepest stables of fighters.
Although the company bears his nickname, De La Hoya has hardly been involved in the day-to-day or big picture operations of the business for years. Instead, he’s battled alcohol abuse and been in and out of rehab while serving as a figure/face of the company. Schaefer is the guy who really has run the company. He organizes the matches, puts on the cards and is the main spokesperson. Simply put, he, along with Arum, has been one of the most powerful promoters in boxing over the past several years.
Schaefer’s departure means a few things. One, Oscar may try to be more intimately involved in the company now, which is not a good thing considering he’s not exactly the smartest guy. Two, Golden Boy may actually try to work with Top Rank to match their fighters against each other, which is something that rarely happened in the past. Three, the company probably is going to go downhill in some way. Lastly, I wouldn’t be surprised if Schaefer went to work with Floyd Mayweather and really helped beef up Floyd’s The Money Team promotions to make it a real player in the industry. Though he remains independent in many aspects, Floyd has worked with Golden Boy on his last several fights, and he has a lot of respect for Schaefer. I wouldn’t be surprised if the two pair up and start something big, especially with Floyd’s fighting career coming to a close. This would be a natural transition towards retirement.
