MANILA, Philippines — New York boxing manager Shelly Finkel yesterday admitted he’s been in contact with Eumir Marcial about the future and if only to assure ABAP he has the best interest in mind for the Olympic middleweight qualifier, he’s ready to explain what his plans are.
Finkel, 75, said he’ll do what’s best for Marcial. “If he wants to turn pro, I’d like to be his manager,” said Finkel in a call from Manhattan. “I’ve followed his career through the years and yes, I’ve spoken with him. His dream is to win the Olympic gold medal and I’m prepared to do what I can to make it happen. I believe under the right circumstances, Eumir can win the Olympic gold. He’s in the top two or three in the world right now. There’s a fighter from South America and another from Kazakhstan who’ll be in there, too. I think training is very important but I’m not sure if he can get good sparring in the Philippines because he’s uniquely big for a Filipino fighter. I can get him in a situation where he can succeed. There’s no downside to Eumir.”
Finkel said coming to an understanding with ABAP is essential. “I have nothing to hide,” he said. “My agenda is to look out for Eumir. My history speaks for itself. Boxing is an ugly business where a lot of people tell lies. When you’re choosing a doctor, you go by his history, what he’s done with his patients, not by what he just tells you. My goal is for Eumir to go to the Tokyo Olympics and him win a gold medal. I have no intentions of doing anything that would interfere with that goal, if anything, I want to help him win that gold. I helped Mark Breland, Pernell Whitaker, Meldrick Taylor, Rocky Juarez, Evander Holyfield and Deontay Wilder go to the Olympics and win medals and then, I managed their professional careers.”
Finkel said in Breland’s case, he stayed amateur to win the welterweight gold at the 1984 Olympics. “There’s more value to a fighter with an Olympic gold medal,” he said. “Mark was the most high-profile fighter at that time, more than Mike Tyson and Evander. After the Olympics, he wanted me to be his manager as a pro and I remember he told the L.A. Times it was because I always had his best interest at heart since he was an amateur. I signed up Mark with an $800,000 bonus but kept half of it in the bank earning a high interest. He could start getting that half of his bonus at 31, giving him $100,000 a year for life. So now, at 56, he’s secure with that money and still earns as Deontay’s trainer. As for Deontay, before the 2008 Olympics, I knew about his daughter with a spinal issue. We took care of that then after the Olympics, Deontay turned pro and became the world heavyweight champion. He knows how I care for him so there must be a reason why he’s renewed my contract thrice.”
Finkel said if Marcial decides to turn pro, he’ll make a “lucrative” offer. “Eumir’s turning 25 in October, he’s not 19 or 20,” he said. “We can’t be sure if the Olympics will happen. We don’t want him shut out. There is talk that the US and Europe may reopen boxing with no audience. If things normalize, we can bring Eumir to the US for sparring and training. If he wants to turn pro, we could arrange two to three fights so he stays active then if the Olympics happen, he’ll be ready. I know of two pros who’ve qualified for the Olympics (Uzbekistan’s superheavyweight Bakhodir Jalolov and India’s welterweight Vikas Yadav).”