Golden Boy boss Oscar De La Hoya says he wants to end the A-side, B-side nonsense and make the mega-fight between Ryan Garcia and WBC light welterweight champion Devin Haney next.
De La Hoya states that they’ll offer Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) a “fair deal,” but he points out that Ryan is the more marketable fighter than him, which has to be seen as a signal to Devin & his management that they can’t attempt to call the shots in the negotiations.
Potential roadblocks
It’ll be very surprising if the Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney fight gets made. It’s more likely that it won’t, and De La Hoya will need to find someone else to match against Ryan.
Oscar’s talk of not wanting to go by the normal A-side, B-side situation that exists in negotiations sounds good, but it’s not realistic. Haney feels that with him being a two-division world champion, and holding the WBC 140-lb strap, that means he’s either the boss in the negotiations or he deserves parity with Ryan.
The unfortunate reality is, that Haney’s title victories don’t translate to marketability, as he beat weak champions, Regis Prograis and George Kambosos Jr, and because of that, he hasn’t gained the large fan base that he would have if he’d beaten well-respected fighters like Gervonta Davis, Subriel Matias or Teofimo Lopez.
“I have instructions from Ryan Garcia personally that he wants Devin Haney. I think that fight is a spectacular, and it’ll be a special fight,” said Oscar De La Hoya to the media today when asked what’s happening with the negotiations for a fight between Ryan Garcia and WBC light welterweight champion Devin Haney.
If Ryan is willing to give Haney the same A-side pull that he did Gervonta last April, this fight gets made because that’s probably what it’s going to take to get this match-up made. Haney seems to be under the illusion that his wins over Prograis, Kambosos, Vasily Lomachenko, and Jorge Linares mean something.
It doesn’t, not when you can’t sell PPVs and bring in an abysmal 50K buys on DAZN. That basically means Haney is just another one of the many belt-holders in the sport that the public has zero interest in watching. Haney might as well hold no belts because if he can’t sell, he’s not going to get the fight with Ryan.
Ryan Garcia sells: What about Haney?
“Devin Haney is on the top of his game. He looked amazing against [Regis] Prograis,” said De La Hoya. “He proved he’s one of the best at 140 because the weight class is stacked with a lot of talent at 140. I think Ryan Garcia against Haney, that’s the fight to make.”
Haney is on top of his game, but we don’t know if he would be at the top of his game if he fought in the correct weight class for his body weight. When you’re rehydrating to 165 and fighting at 140, that suggests that you’re a weight bully.
As heavy as Haney is, he should be fighting at 147 or 154. Fighters that compete in those weight classes rehydrate to 165, but not guys that compete in the 140-lb division.
“I’ve already talked to his people, Haney’s people, and we’re going to get this done,” said De La Hoya. “Hopefully, sooner than later. I think this whole A-side, B-side nonsense is about to stop in 2024.
“When you take a look at fighters and their ability to sell tickets, their abilities to be world champions, I think that’s what matters the most, but the A-side, the B-side, who sold more pay-per-views or who didn’t. It’s always controversial, it’s always a debate.
“We know that Ryan sells. We were involved in one of the biggest fights in 2023 with Tank Davis and Ryan. Haney is a tremendous fighter with tremendous skills and abilities. So, you have to weigh in everything and take it into consideration,” said De La Hoya.
Haney’s PPV results for the Prograis fight mean he doesn’t sell, and the rumors of complimentary tickets being given out to fill up the Chase Center in San Francisco for that fight indicate that he isn’t a big ticket seller either.
“The one thing we can do and will do is be fair. Fair to the fighters and what they deserve, and fair to the fighters what their market value is. If you tell me right now whose market value is higher. It’s no secret, it’s Ryan Garcia,” said De La Hoya, pointing out that Ryan is more marketable than Haney.
“So, one thing about us at Golden Boy, because I was a fighter myself, we are very fair in negotiating,” said De La Hoya.
