Hafey turned professional in 1968 at 17 years old. His first three professional years saw him stick to local venues in
New Glasgow,
Fredericton, and
Dartmouth, where he built a fight record of 9-3-1. At the March 1973
Ali-Norton fight at the San Diego Sports Arena (now
Pechanga Arena), both he and his brother appeared on the undercard, with him stopping Valente Vera by knockout in the co-main event. Hafey's first major bout in California was against Octavio Gomez in May 1973. After being knocked to the canvas twice early in the contest, he recovered to unleash a barrage that opened a deep cut above Gomez's eye, resulting in a stoppage win. He faced Olivares again in March 1974 for the North American featherweight championship, coming up short on the scorecards in a split decision loss, even though he had dropped Olivares in the final round. Two months after fighting Olivares, Hafey faced
Alexis Argüello in May 1974 in
Masaya, Nicaragua. He traveled to
Caracas in March 1975 and knocked out the former junior lightweight champion of the world,
Alfredo Marcano, in round four.
Ring magazine listed Hafey as the number one featherweight contender at the close of 1975. During the fight, he sustained serious facial swelling, which his team ignored in favor of celebrating the win. The bout caused a brain hemorrhage and partial vision loss in both eyes, limiting him to three more fights. ==Professional boxing record==