Golden Boy boss Oscar De La Hoya says he’s targeting March for the Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney fight, and he’s optimistic the match-up can get made. Oscar thinks he can work with Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) and his dad, Bill Haney, to put together a deal that everyone will be pleased with.
(Photo credit: Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy Promotions)
De La Hoya refers to Haney as the “top dog at 140,” which boxing fans think is laughable because he’s only fought once in the division, and that was against 35-year-old Regis Prograis.
Many fans feel the true #1 is Subriel Matias, whereas Haney is down in the pecking order, perhaps #3, behind Teofimo Lopez.
Negotiations are set to begin
De La Hoya states that the negotiations will begin next week, and he feels that as long as everyone is “fair,” he doesn’t see any reason why it can get made.
Ryan (24-1, 20 KOs) has given De La Hoya his orders to fight with Haney, who will defend his WBC light welterweight title.
What’s important is that fighters don’t insist on getting huge guaranteed purses because the fight might not bring in enough revenue on PPV to cover it.
Haney’s recent PPV fight against Regis Prograis on December 9th reportedly did terrible numbers on DAZN, which is a sign that he’s not popular with casual or hardcore boxing fans.
De La Hoya said a possible backup plan for Ryan would be to match him against Arnold Barboza Jr. or Ohara Davies if he can’t get the fight with Haney made.
That wouldn’t go over well with the fans, Ryan fighting Davies or Barboza Jr, but on the bright side, it would be an upgrade from his last opponent, Oscar Duarte.
Garcia-Haney targeted for March
“Yes, that’s the next fight we want to make. Ryan Garcia gave me specific instructions to make that fight; we’re going to make it,” said Oscar De La Hoya to Fight Hub TV about his hopes to make the Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney fight for March.
“Devin Haney is the top dog at 140, and no disrespect to [WBO light welterweight champion] Teofimo [Lopez] because he’s a tremendous talent. But there are many fights to be made at 140, but first things first,” said De La Hoya.
“We’re going to start the official negotiations [for Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney] after this fight [Vergil Ortiz Jr. vs. Fredrick Lawson] this Saturday, and talk to whoever is in charge with Haney, and get this fight happening.”
It’s going to be a major feat for Golden Boy to get the fight made between Ryan and Haney because the way the two fighters have been talking, they both seem to think they’re the shot-caller in this match-up.
It would have been better to let this fight marinate more to give Ryan more time to get experience as a pro and get some quality wins under his belt before fighting Haney.
However, with Devin now weighing 165, Ryan doesn’t have time to get experience. Haney will likely be rehydrating to the mid-170s soon, and he’ll be fighting at junior middleweight or middleweight. Unlike his dad, Bill, Haney packs on the pounds and looks soft in between fights.
“I think this fight can easily get made,” said De La Hoya. “I think Haney’s father [Bill] and Devin and very smart individuals who know what it takes to make a fight happen. We have to weigh a few factors into this.
“Haney is an amazing fighter. He just had an amazing outing with Prograis. We also have to take into consideration Ryan coming off the biggest PPV, with Tank and Ryan being a superstar. So, we have to weigh all that in and just make it fair to everyone.
“As long as we’re fair to everyone, fights can be made. I’m hoping March would be ideal,” said De La Hoya on when he wants to make Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney.
