Highly decorated amateur Jalil Hackett of Washington D.C. has taken his talents to Mayweather Promotions and will turn pro at welterweight in 2021. No date or opponent has been announced yet. With an amateur record of 140-19 and a 3.7 GPA to finish high school a year early, “Major” Hackett is trained by his father Bernard. Hackett put himself on Mayweather Promotions’ radar in 2019 after being discovered at Upton Gym while helping Gervonta Davis prepare for his homecoming fight against Ricardo Nunez in 2019. After both a co-sign from a childhood friend to Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe, and a stamp of approval from Coach Calvin and Gervonta Davis, the DC native spent 2019 and 2020 preparing for his transition to the pros and made it official on March 4, 2021.
“It means a lot to be signed with Mayweather Promotions,” said Hackett. “When you think Floyd Mayweather you think, “the GOAT”. “To be signed to him, and be one of the youngest at that is a dream come true. Most fighters dream of this, and this is now my reality. “It was important to me that I signed with a black-owned company, and I’m with the best one, which is Mayweather Promotions.”
“This signing is a culmination of the hard work we’ve put in since he was 5 years old,” said Bernard Hackett. “We dreamed bigger than the Olympics, it was always to turn professional. “I am happy he’s with a black-owned company who understands what he will encounter as a black athlete both in and out the ring.”
Hackett was first introduced to the sport of boxing at 5 years old by his father, an avid boxing fan. Hackett specifically recalls watching legends like Roy Jones Jr., Julio Caesar Chavez, and Marvin Hagler on the screen. There was a reason for that. Bernard loved fighters known for their intense conditioning in the ring and high output, which Jalil is now known for due to his football and track and field conditioning. Hackett recalls sparring 13 rounds with a kid before the opposition jumped out of the ring. During football offseason Hackett would go to the local gym to train, but it wasn’t until he was 8 years old that he fell in love with the sport and began competing seriously. His driving force to compete came after seeing the countless trophies strung at the home of an accomplished world champion. The motivation alone drove Hackett to achieve many titles at the amateur level including becoming a 5x Title tournament champion, Silver Gloves champion, 2x Jr. Olympics champion, to name a few.
