Jermall Charlo encapsulated his complicated relationship with his twin brother when he was asked to make closing comments during his post-fight press conference late Saturday night at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.
âAnd if yâall talk to my twin brother, tell him I love him,â Jermall Charlo said. âAnd tell him I won the fight and, you know, yâall call him for me or whatever, hit him up. He not answering my calls or whatever.â
Organizers of the Showtime Pay-Per-View card on which Jermall Charlo defeated Jose Benavidez Jr. expected Jermell Charlo to sit ringside in support of his brother, despite the squabbles both boxers have discussed publicly. The former undisputed junior middleweight champion didnât attend the show, which took place almost two months after Jermall Charlo sat ringside for Jermell Charloâs biggest fight â a 12-round, unanimous-decision defeat to Canelo Alvarez on September 30 at nearby T-Mobile Arena.
Jermall Charlo hugged his brother in Jermellâs dressing room before that Showtime Pay-Per-View main event. The unbeaten WBC middleweight champion apparently hasnât spoken to brother since they left Las Vegas following Jermellâs lopsided loss to Alvarez.
Jermall Charlo (33-0, 22 KOs) and Jermell Charlo (35-2-1, 19 KOs) both live in the Houston area, but Jermell Charlo indicated three days before he challenged Alvarez that they might remain estranged.
âThis is the same mindset I always have,â Jermell Charlo told a group of reporters after a press conference September 27 at MGM Grand. âThey say Iâm calm, cool and collected, but Iâm really fired up. I donât know why they [say that]. You know, I guess I can say not having my rowdy-ass brother around me every [day] â my brother ainât been in camp. Ainât seen him, talked to him, nothing, throughout this whole camp.
âI think that mightâve, you know, slowed me down as far as how rational I can be. You know, when he getting ready for a fight, Iâm loud and obnoxious and energy, intoxicated, whatever we wanna call it, and having a good time waiting on him to fight. And I feel like at this moment, itâs my turn. Just donât got that noise in my head.â
Jermell Charlo did admit at that time that he somewhat missed having Jermall Charlo around him.
âI did, maybe a little bit,â Jermell Charlo said. âIt ainât affecting me. I still got a good team. I still got my friends, people I grew up with and all of this. You know, like I donât think â I have no excuses. You know, and my brotherâs getting his life together and whatever he gotta do to be the best in boxing. So, Iâm my brotherâs keeper always.â
Jermall Charlo discussed his mental health struggles again Saturday night, just before he mentioned that he hasnât been in contact with his brother in recent months.
âPublic, people in the world, human beings,â Jermall Charlo said, âif you have a problem, the best way to like overcome your problems is finding a special person and talk to him. Some people, they here for you, you know? A person like me, reach out to me, DM me. I might hit you back. But hey, find somebody to get some help, man, because like it get dark. And itâs real, you know?â
Jermall Charlo, 33, ended a 29-month layoff by beating Benavidez in Showtime Pay-Per-Viewâs co-feature before David Benavidez stopped Demetrius Andrade after the sixth round of their main event. He came in 3½ pounds overweight Friday for their 10-round, 163-pound, non-title bout, but the heavily favored Charlo fought effectively and decisively defeated Phoenixâs Benavidez (28-3-1, 19 KOs) by wide distances on all three scorecards (100-90, 99-91, 98-92).
By Keith Idec