The night of April 20 was an extremely difficult night for WBC super lightweight world champion Devin “The Dream” Haney (31-1, 15 KOs) when he lost his unblemished record and failed to take advantage of the opportunity. get the next spot. star level.
(Photo source: Sumio Yamada)
Haney has built a systematic career and received many awards, but for some reason, his achievements have not translated into star power. Haney's longtime opponent, Ryan Garcia, has star power, but Garcia has been boxing for eight years and has never won a world title.
Back in October 2019, Devin Haney was promoted from WBC interim champion to WBC world lightweight champion. Two years later, George Kambosos Jr. pulled off an incredible upset by defeating Teofimo Lopez and winning the WBA, WBO and IBF lightweight titles.
The paths of George Kambosos and Devin Haney will cross when Haney travels to Melbourne, Australia, to compete for the undisputed lightweight crown. Haney defeated Kambosos and won by unanimous decision.
Four months later, in October 2022, Devin Haney returned to Australia for a rematch with George Kambosos. Once again Haney took a boxing class and won the contest by unanimous decision.
At 23 years old, Devin Haney remains the youngest undisputed four-belt champion. By conquering the stacked lightweight division, you would think simply elevating Haney to superstar status would be enough, but unfortunately for him that is not the case.
As Haney became undisputed, his colleagues created the narrative that belts didn't matter. As a guest on 'The Last Stand' with Brian Custer, Gervonta Davis addressed Haney by saying: “Of course, he's got all these belts now and people still don't know him. He couldn't fight in his hometown. He can't sell it.”
As the undisputed world lightweight champion, Devin Haney decided to take a big risk by defending his crown against former pound-for-pound number one boxer Vasiliy Lomachenko. A decisive win over the former three-division world champion would certainly help Haney's star shine brighter.
Haney will face Lomachenko on May 20, 2023 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. A fight that had the potential to make Devin Haney a household name, actually hurt his stock due to Haney being the beneficiary of what many fight fans believed was a controversial decision.
Following his fight with Lomachenko, Haney will return to his birthplace of San Francisco, California for a world title fight. Well above his weight class, Haney moved up to 140 to challenge WBC world champion Regis Prograis.
In front of a sellout crowd of 16,000, Devin Haney defeated Prograis by unanimous decision. With the win, Haney added another accolade by becoming a two-weight world champion. The fight against Prograis added another accomplishment to his portfolio, but the next fight was an opportunity to further his reputation.
On Saturday night, April 20, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, Devin Haney took on his very famous opponent, Ryan Garcia. This was Haney's chance to get a big win and by winning, he put his status as a boxing superstar in the right direction.
Unfortunately in the opening round, Haney stumbled out of the gate when caught by Garcia's signature left hook. Over the course of the fight, Haney would hit the canvas three times and lose the fight by majority decision.
Ryan Garcia dominated Devin Haney and as a result, Garcia finally got the big win he's been looking for his entire career. Because Garcia missed weight, Haney still retained the WBC world championship, but he lost miserably and missed the opportunity to become the face of boxing.
Devin Haney and his father/coach, Bill Haney, are making strategic moves to enhance Devin Haney's image. They took a page from Money Mayweather's playbook where Bill would play the heel role.
The goal is to be like Money Mayweather, where you play a character that people despise so much that they want to see Devin Haney lose. That way, people who like Devin pay to watch him win and people who don't like Devin pay to watch him lose. Bill fulfilled his role well, but the plan never reached its destination.
Devin Haney is a highly skilled ring technician, but if becoming the face of boxing is his ultimate goal, he will probably never achieve that title because of his catchy style. and his summary does not appeal to fans. Haney did not have an extroverted personality nor did he possess the powers of a crowd-pleasing entertainer.
Haney's chance to elevate to superstardom and become a top pay-per-view attraction fell on the night of April 20. However, after taking some time off, he was able to return and continue to build a famous resume by defending his title and possibly moving up to 147 in an attempt to become champion. three-rank world champion.
