The stars and the moon appeared to be aligning perfectly for Richardson Hitchins.

After waving farewell to Mayweather Promotions and signing on with Matchroom Boxing, the former Olympian envisioned hefty paydays and gargantuan fights. Amongst a long list of highly ranked contenders at 140 pounds, Hitchins believed that a matchup between himself and Montana Love made all the sense in the world.

Ironically enough, Hitchins (15-0, 7 KOs) officially made his Matchroom debut on the undercard of Love’s showdown against Steve Spark on November 12th. With the 25-year-old pounding Yomar Alamo via eighth-round stoppage, the loquacious contender grabbed his ringside seat to take in the sights of the main event.

Initially, Hitchins was completely convinced that Love would take care of business against Spark, leading to them squaring off at some point in 2023. Spark, however, didn't get the memo.

Love’s adoring fan base stood motionless with their hands clasped over their mouths as Spark sent their hometown hero crashing down to the canvas in the second round. In a moment of pure frustration, Love and Spark became entangled in the center of the ring in the sixth round. Just seconds later, Love bullied his man halfway across the ring before launching him over the top rope, leading to his disqualification.

Admittedly, Hitchins was bemused by what took place. More importantly, he was despondent as the biggest bout of his young career was dashed away. While acrimonious, Hitchins has moved on. On February 4th, at the Hulu Theater in New York’s Madison Square Garden, the Brooklyn native will take on fellow undefeated contender, John Bauza.

As long as everything goes according to plan, Hitchins reveals that the Montana Love ship hasn't completely set sail. With only a handful of bouts underneath his belt, Hitchins knows good and well that it wouldn’t be sagacious to behave apathetically toward a matchup against Love. Considering his current stature in the super lightweight division, the 25-year-old concludes that snagging a victory over the Ohio native would be to his benefit.

“I think Montana Love is still a name in the division,” said Hitchins on Thaboxingvoice. “I think that I haven't proven myself to say oh I’m not fighting Montana Love, he gotta get back. Fighting Montana Love is still me proving myself to show that I belong with the top-level fighters at 140 so I would definitely be open to that fight.”