Devin ‘The Dream’ Haney says he’s considering moving up to 140 for a “one-off” fight to test the waters in the division if his promoter Eddie Hearn can’t set up a fight against undisputed lightweight champion George Kambosos Jr. for May.
Haney (27-0, 15 KOs) says he’ll freeze his WBC 135-lb title so that he can return to the lightweight division after his experiment fight at light welterweight [140]
Devin, 23, wants to see how he feels at 140, but he’ll definitely be returning to the lightweight division for any big fights.
It’s going to be difficult for Haney to compete with the bigger punchers in the 140-lb division, as they hit a lot harder than the guys he’s been facing at lightweight.
In Haney’s last two fights against Joseph ‘Jojo’ Diaz Jr. and Jorge Linares, he’s been stunned multiple times.
Haney talks 140 “one-off” fight
“So, of course, I won’t give up on it until I know it can’t be done,” said Haney to Fight Hub TV on him continue to try to negotiate with Kambosos. “We’re looking at 140,” Haney said when asked what he’ll do if he can’t get the fight with Kambosos.
“I’ll still keep my belt at 135. I’ll take a one-off at 140 just to see how I feel,” said Haney. “I don’t know. I just got to see, but for the biggest fights at 135, I will make the weight and stay there,” said Haney.
“This is a huge opportunity for me, something that will put me into the history books forever,” said Haney on him potentially facing four-belt lightweight champion George Kambosos Jr.
Devin labels Rolly Romero a “bum”
“Rolly was a bum then and he’s a bum now, so it ain’t no different,” said Haney to reacting to the news of Rolando Romero fighting Tank Davis next. “He’s sorry. If you know you know.
“He fought some dude [Jackson Marinez] and he really lost the fight and then Commy knocked him out,” said Haney.
Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero (14-0, 12 KOs) is signed with Mayweather Promotions, and he’s arguably the #1 trash talker in the lightweight division.
Rolly may not be the best fighter, but he can attract attention to fights in the same way Adrien Broner does with his ability to trash talk.
Romero, 26, looked poor in his fight with Jackson Marinez in 2020, and a lot of boxing fans feel that he deserved to lose.
Since that fight, Mayweather Promotions have backed Romero off from contender-level opposition by matching him against Anthony Yigit and Avery Sparrow, and he’s responded by doing well.
You can’t call Rolly a bum, though. He’d give Haney a lot of problems with his size, punching power, and awkward style of fighting.
Does Ryan Garcia want to fight?
“Is it real? Will it really happen? Are they really negotiating? Does he really want to fight?” said Haney when asked about his thoughts on Ryan Garcia potentially facing Tevin Farmer next.
“With Ryan Garcia, you never know if it’s real or if it’s not because, at any given moment, he may pull out.
“You’ve got to be mindful of those things when you’re trying to use him [as an opponent]. ‘Oh, I’m going to fight this opponent, and in a few more moments I’m going to fight Ryan Garcia.’
“You’ve got to remember that he pulls out of fights. You’ve never seen Devin Haney pull out of one fight,” said Haney.
Ryan Garcia said this week that he’s starting training camp for his next fight in April, but he failed to say who his opponent will be. The 23-year-old King Ry and his promoters at Golden Boy promotions are being coy on who they plan on picking for the fight.
With it being February, it’s a sign that they don’t plan on matching Ryan Garcia against a talented opponent. If it was a big name, Golden Boy would have already announced the fight.
Tevin Farmer, a former IBF super featherweight champion, is the potential opponent for Ryan. Farmer hasn’t fought in a couple of years since his loss to Joseph ‘Jojo’ Diaz Jr.
Farmer’s lack of size, punching power, and inactivity makes him the ideal opponent for Ryan.
