Will Devin Haney be better, have more power, at a higher weight class?،
LAS VEGAS – Devin Haney, fresh from another grueling workout, is hunched over in the locker room adjacent to the ring at Top Rank Gym. It's the day after Thanksgiving and Haney is just weeks away from taking the next step in his already famous boxing career.
A pink towel is wrapped around Haney's neck as he opens a container to snack on a scoop of protein and a date. He is more comfortable during this camp since he can eat more and even rest more. Haney, who campaigned as the undisputed 135-pound champion, has five more pounds to work with ahead of his junior welterweight debut Saturday against WBC champion Regis Prograis in San Francisco.
It's easy to see that Haney's back is much bigger than ever, both in terms of muscle definition and width. At 5-foot-8 with a frame to match, he is not an undersized boxer who simply increases his weight to win an easy title and become a two-division champion.
In his first trip to junior welterweight, Haney (30-0, 15 KOs) will challenge a dangerous southpaw puncher, a divergent path from the usual boxing playbook.
When fighters take the step into one of boxing's 17 divisions, the first opponent is usually a softer contact, “tune-up fight.” Granted, this is not an explosive left-handed puncher where A-side power and punch resistance will be tested from the get-go.
When Oscar De La Hoya moved up from 147 to 154 pounds, he did so against Javier Castillejo, where he picked up an easy title by decision. Most recently, Haney's rival Shakur Stevenson debuted in the 130-pound class with a decision victory over fringe contender Jeremiah Nakathila.
Haney, however, wants to continue his momentum after his career-best victory, a thrilling and contested unanimous decision win over future Hall of Famer Vasiliy Lomachenko in May.
“I never thought about [an easy first fight at 140]” said Haney, ESPN's No. 7 pound-for-pound boxer. “I'm a returning fighter. I want big-money fights. I don't want to fight no-name guys or people I really can't take advantage of just to win a title. »
Haney will surely look to claim Fighter of the Year honors with a convincing victory over Prograis (29-1, 24 KOs), but by no means will it be easy, even if Haney is a -450. favorite, per ESPN BET.
There are questions about Haney's toughness and power, although there is no doubt about his boxing talent, IQ and athleticism. Now Haney must prove he can both take a punch and hit hard enough to earn the respect of his opponents at 140 pounds, where he will fight bigger, stronger and more powerful foes.
“I want to fight the best fighters in the world,” Haney said. “I'm 25 now and I'm only getting better, I'm only getting stronger, I'm only getting more comfortable in the ring. So why step back?”
AS WAS THE In the case of Manny Pacquiao, Terence Crawford and Canelo Alvarez, fighters sometimes develop increased power in a higher weight class. But much more often, the opposite happens. Floyd Mayweather was a feared puncher weighing 130 and 135 pounds. At 147 and 154? Not really.
Haney is far from being a power puncher. Of course, there was his knockout of Antonio Moran that won ESPN's 2019 KO of the Year and a fourth-round TKO of Zaur Abdullaev four months later. But he hasn't earned a stoppage victory in his last seven fights.
The last five fights have come against much tougher opposition, and Haney hasn't scored a knockdown in any of those matchups – Jorge Linares, Joseph “JoJo” Diaz Jr., two fights with George Kambosos Jr. and Lomachenko – and none of these enemies ever got into serious trouble.
He boxed magnificently throughout these 60 rounds, especially against Lomachenko, his best opponent to date. Haney took punishing body shots in May and left the Ukrainian with a battered and bruised left flank.
Haney showed his cunning and smart boxing, but also his relentlessness in this shootout against an all-time great. Power has never been his calling card.
However, against stronger opponents, power (or lack thereof) might be more important than ever. Haney's jab is one of the best in boxing, but at some point Prograis will close the distance and connect with a powerful shot. And Haney will need to land with enough conviction to deter Prograis from pouncing.
“You haven’t had a knockout in four years,” Prograis, who has campaigned his entire career at junior welterweight, told Haney during Thursday’s press conference. …Who did you knock out? Person.”
Sometimes fighters are so exhausted that their true punching power is only revealed when they compete at a more comfortable weight.
“Will I be much stronger? One hundred percent,” Haney said. “Will I go there and get the knockout? God willing. Inshallah.”
Crawford scored solid knockouts at 135 and 140 pounds, but at 147 he's a different fighter. All eight of Crawford's fights at welterweight ended by knockout and against better opposition than he faced at lower weight.
“When transitioning to a new weight class, it raises doubts: Will I have the strength? Will I maintain my speed? Can I take a punch?” Hall of Fame boxer Timothy Bradley Jr. told ESPN. “Moving up from 140 to 147 pounds, I faced Luis Carlos Abregu, an undefeated puncher with 23 knockouts in 29 fights. His punches were powerful and landed like if he carried dumbbells, which made me extremely sharp, alert and careful. It tested every ounce of my abilities.
“I want to see how Regis takes my shot… I think Regis will be shocked.” [by my power]. I think the world will be shocked.”
Devin Haney on gaining weight
Last December, Crawford delivered one of the best knockouts of the year by knocking David Avanesyan out of his senses. His most recent performance was his greatest display of power to date, a ninth-round TKO of Errol Spence Jr., which featured three knockdowns.
Hitting with power is all about technique, but there are myriad other factors.
“I think when we move up in weight, we'll all be bigger punchers,” said Jamaine Ortiz, who is advised by Bill Haney and dropped a close decision to Lomachenko in 2022.
“I think just cutting a lot of weight… takes away a lot of the potential and the power that we have, the stress that we put on our bodies. It's safe to say that 90 for “A hundred of the fighters are fighting at the wrong weight.”
IN 30 PRO fights, Haney never tasted the canvas and was never on the verge of getting knocked down. Still, questions arise about his ability to take a punch.
Concerns came to a head during his victory over a faded version of Jorge Linares in May 2021. Haney earned a close decision victory over the former three-division champion, but not before Linares sent him back to his corner after a net right. hand at the end of round 10.
The fighter's father, trainer and manager, Bill Haney, said he saw “a different level of confidence in Devin than last camp.” The belief in his chin comes from the fact that he withstood “a burst of Loma with [eight-ounce gloves on,” said the eldest Haney.
“Regis Prograis seems to think that he has more punching power than Loma,” the father said. “I beg to differ. I think that they’re both incredibly talented. Devin is pretty sharp. So he was seeing the punches that came from Loma.
“He saw the punch that came from Linares, and although it rocked his s—, it’s expected in boxing.”
Any chin concerns are only amplified ahead of the Prograis fight. While Prograis is coming off a lackluster split-decision win over Danielito Zorrilla in June, prior to that, he scored four consecutive wins inside the distance.
The most impressive of those stoppages came in his previous victory, an 11th-round KO of Jose Zepeda to become a two-time champion at 140 pounds. Prograis, 34, who fights out of Houston, sent Zepeda crashing to the mat in brutal fashion with a flurry of punches in the penultimate round.
There’s no doubt Prograis can end a fight with one shot. But he’s never done it against an A+ opponent. His lone pro defeat came against the only elite foe of his career, a majority-decision loss to Josh Taylor in the World Boxing Super Series final in October 2019.
“Even when I watched fights from back in the day and people used to dehydrate themselves, they get knocked out, they get knocked down. And it’s very dangerous,” Ortiz said. “So I definitely think when you fight at the appropriate weight class, your ability to come out of the sport safely, where all your fundamentals, your tools, your mind sharp, comes with having a safe weight loss.”
Haney is one of the best defensive fighters in boxing. He knows how to measure range and doesn’t often get hit with a clean shot. But Diaz was able to connect with some sharp overhand lefts late in their 2021 bout, even if they never forced Haney to waver.
Prograis and Haney are 5-8 with a similar build. Just maybe, Haney was fighting at the wrong weight for the past couple of years.
“It was taking everything out of me to make 135,” said Haney, who after entertaining the idea of moving up, remained at the weight for two fights vs. Kambosos last year in Australia for the undisputed lightweight championship. “I’ve been at 135 since I was 17 years old. I’ve matured so much since then.
“My body, everything has got bigger so it was only a matter of time and I was making a sacrifice and then it became a point where my sacrifice wasn’t even respected. They weren’t respecting me making the sacrifice and staying and making the big fights happen.”
NO MATTER WHAT Haney says — and no matter whom he faced in sparring — nothing can truly prepare him for that first clean left hand he absorbs from Prograis in San Francisco.
There are those who believe Haney’s hubris in selecting Prograis will result in his first pro loss. And already, Haney told ESPN he eyes a jump to 147 pounds in his first bout of 2024.
“He goes up to 140, not even testing the water. I wouldn’t encourage him to say that he wants to go up to 147 pounds because he’s going to have his hands full with Regis Prograis,” Bradley said on last week’s State of Boxing on ESPN+. “I gotta give a ton of respect to Devin Haney. He’s one of those throwback fighters.”
Of course, it’s not enough to simply chase greatness. Haney must now deliver in the ring against Prograis following a heated promotion that involved lots of verbal exchanges.
“I want to see how Regis takes my punch,” Haney said. “I think Regis will be shocked [by my power]. I think the world will be shocked. …I prepare myself for Regis to take my punches and for me to continue hitting him. So if he takes power, then he takes power. If he doesn't do it, he doesn't do it. …
“I'm not just relying on my strength to win the fight because that's what he does. He's just relying on strength, power and a big punch. I'm relying on skill, athleticism, my IQ – all. “
Haney said he was “a lot calmer, a lot more relaxed” ahead of his 140-pound debut. When he trained for Lomachenko, he did so with something else in mind.
“I used to train to gain weight,” he said. “Right now, I'm training to get better and focus on strategy and stuff like that. And it feels good, man. It's been a long time coming.”
There were many who doubted his ability to handle Lomachenko's speed, accuracy and angles, and even those who thought he didn't deserve the decision.
So Haney wants to prove them wrong again. In his quest to silence the naysayers, Haney once again faces a daunting challenge. And he'll do it in the Bay Area, where he spent his childhood before moving to Las Vegas.
“It’s not just about money, it’s about being great,” Bill Haney said. “And that's what it's about Devin. You can't pay to get on the Mount Rushmore of boxing. You have to work. This fight here will show that he is the best fighter in this year, but he is also the best fighter on the planet.”
For now, he needs to show Prograis – and the world – that he can both deliver a punch and absorb one at junior welterweight.
“When I beat Regis and the way I’m going to beat him, I think a lot of people will respect him and recognize him,” he said. “I feel like it's my time right now. I'm going there to hurt him. And show him how great Devin Haney really is.”
