Trainer Bullet Cromwell believes Devin Haney would have beaten the out-of-shape slugger Ryan Garcia if he had boxed him instead of changing his style to brawl in their fight on April 20th.
Bullet feels that Haney (31-1, 15 KO) veered away from his normal fighting style as a pure boxer to try and please the crowd in his mega-fight on DAZN PPV against Ryan (25-1, 20 KOs), and he paid the price by losing a 12 round decision.
Cromwell says in a rematch, Haney will beat Ryan “a**” by boxing him for 12 rounds. However, it doesn’t look like there’s going to be a rematch, so Haney would need to learn his lesson without fighting Ryan again.
The Crowd-Pleasing Trap
“Devin Haney is the best boxer in boxing. With that jab, that speed, and that IQ, and with that experience, Devin shouldn’t be boxing with that style against a fighter,” said trainer Bullet Cromwell to Fighthype about Devin Haney making a mistake of slugging with Ryan Garcia.
Haney chose to make it entertaining because he’d obviously heard fans criticize his fighting style going into the match, while praising Ryan’s more drama-filled approach. Devin wants to become a PPV star, but that can’t happen if he’s going to be boxing his opponents like he did in his previous fight against Regis Prograis.
Haney’s True Potential and Missed Opportunity
“If he had boxed Ryan Garcia, he would have gassed him out and stopped him,” said Bullet. “If I know your intention is to hurt me and hit me hard, you’re not going to land it. For me, Ryan didn’t do anything special. Devin just got off the winning horse.
“He got a triple crown himself as a boxer. Why jump off that winning horse to become a fighter and a brawler? This is your legacy and your style. Ryan Garcia wasn’t in great shape, and he definitely wasn’t in a great mindset.”
Haney took a gamble and it backfired on him, but it was still admirable that he at least attempted to make it entertaining for the fans. If Haney had won by knockout by slugging with Ryan, his popularity would have increased.
“But when you come into a fight with a certain mindset, now you put pressure on yourself to do that to please the crowd. You don’t have to be a crowd-pleaser. You have to be a self-pleaser in your career,” said Bullet.
“I feel if they did a rematch, Devin Haney would whip his a** for 12 rounds. It’s just about the mindset,” said Bullet.
