Jesse Hart plans to make it memorable

JESSE HART always figured that by the time he became a pro boxer, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao would be retired.

He was wrong.

On Saturday, he'll fight on the undercard of arguably the biggest fight in boxing history, when the two pound-for-pound kings clash at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Hart (16-0, 13 KOs), who grew up in North Philadelphia at 28th and Berks, takes on Chicago's Mike Jimenez (17-0, 11 KOs) in a scheduled 10-round bout for the vacant USBA super middleweight title.

It will be Hart's second bout on the undercard of fellow Top Rank fighter Pacquiao. Hart made his pro debut, a first-round TKO of Manuel Eastman, in June 2012 on the card headlined by Pacquiao's split-decision loss to Timothy Bradley, also at the MGM Grand.

"I never dreamed of fighting on a card of this magnitude," Hart, 25, said during yesterday's media workout at Joe Hand Boxing Gym in Northern Liberties. "I thought Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao would be retired when I got in the game . . . long gone. I never thought I would have the chance to perform in the same ring as them.

"D & D Management, they made it happen."

Hart's brother Damon, who was shot and killed in 2010, was always telling his younger brother that he'd be up there with Mayweather at some point in his career. And while Hart isn't there yet, this is a pretty cool stepping stone for him in his young career.

"This is the stage he said I would be going for," Hart said of his brother. "This fight is dedicated to him."

The fight, which isn't scheduled to be a part of the mega pay-per-view telecast, is being billed as "Someone's 0 Must Go."

But Hart, who had a decorated amateur career before turning pro, says he's already lost a fight: when Damon was murdered.

"I have to live with that every day," Hart said. "People don't understand that, that's why I train so hard. I say to people, 'I took my loss already. I took my L.' There's no more losses I could take. What can you do to me that isn't already done? I lost a close relative, a brother, that I grew up with in the same house. We slept in the same bed. I can't be defeated."

Hart - whose father and trainer, Eugene "Cyclone" Hart, was a heavy-hitting middleweight contender - just wrapped up a 6-week training camp that kept him away from his family.

The plan was to be up in Allentown for camp, but some prior commitments from members of his team - including Fred Jenkins finishing camp with heavyweight Bryant Jennings - kept him closer to Philly, staying in Delaware County for the duration of camp.

"He told me the hardest thing he's ever had to do was be away from his daughter [Halo, 2] for Easter," co-manager Doc Nowicki said.

Yesterday marked Hart's last workout before leaving for Las Vegas today. Hart, who won five fights in 2014, put on a dazzling, uptempo workout while many onlookers cheered him on.

In between workout routines, Hart - nicknamed "Hard Work" for his tireless work ethic - did some trash talking, saying he was "training for a knockout."

"If I don't knock him out, it doesn't count," Hart said. "At the end of the day, this is the biggest stage in boxing. That's how I leave my mark. The focus is on Mayweather and Pacquiao. But the people won't ever forget a knockout. They might say, 'Floyd and Pacquiao fought, but that kid Jesse Hart, he knocked that kid out that night.' "

Regarding the victor in the card's main attraction, Hart said he's going with his Top Rank teammate, Pacquiao.

Possible homecoming next?

Once Hart brings the belt back to North Philadelphia, he says, the plan is to then fight in his neck of the woods.

Hart once fought at Temple's McGonigle Hall in December 2012, on the undercard of a Bryant Jennings heavyweight fight, but that was just his fifth professional fight.

This time he wants to be the headliner. Hart said there is talk of a co-promoted event, involving Russell Peltz and Top Rank, targeted for this summer at Temple's Liacouras Center.

"My stage, in my neighborhood, with my people," Hart said, smiling.

"We're looking at maybe a July or August fight," said Nowicki, who shares managerial duties for Hart with David Price at D & D Management. "Hopefully in Philly, because that could sell out. If not, maybe a big venue at the shore.

"Right now, the biggest day of his career is Saturday. He's ready, he's there. The sky's the limit."