Promoter Eddie Hearn believes that undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney will defeat Vasyl Lomachenko if he sticks around at 135 for one more fight before moving up to 140.
The 23-year-old Haney (29-0, 15 KOs) hasn’t yet confirmed whether he’ll stay at lightweight to defend against #1 WBC Lomachenko (16-2, 11 KOs).
Haney said nothing during the post-fight press conference about fighting Lomachenko, which was unusual for him. When Haney is interested in fighting someone, he mentions them. He didn’t do that with Lomachenko, and we can only assume that Haney wants no part in fighting him.
If Haney moves up to 140 without facing Loma, he’s likely to take a tune-up level opponent. That would be a bad deal for Top Rank, who has Haney signed for a three-fight contract.
The first two fights for Haney were easy matches against George Kambosos Jr, who turned out to be a much worse fighter than some fans originally thought he was.
For Haney’s third and final fight of his three-fight contract, Top Rank wants him to face Lomachenko, and you can’t blame them.
They let Haney take two easy fights, so it makes sense for them to want him to face an elite-level guy for his third fight.
“Devin Haney gets criticism for being a boring fighter, but he’s a brilliant fighter,” said Eddie Hearn to Fight Hub TV when asked to give his thoughts on the lightweight division.
“We worked with him for a long time. He’s so smart, he’s difficult to beat, and it’s going to take someone special to beat him,” Hearn continued about Haney.
“Shakur Stevenson, Tank maybe, but I don’t think so, Ryan Garcia, but I don’t think so. But the biggest fight in the division by a mile is Tank vs. Ryan Garcia.
“Lomachenko is a tremendous fighter. To us in boxing, Lomachenko against Haney is a great fight. He is a quarter of the fight of Tank vs. Ryan Garcia because you have to understand the fan bases and the mix of personalities, and Ryan Garcia brings a huge following into that fight away from boxing.
“Gervonta Davis brings all of boxing and crowds and energy. It’s a brilliant fight. I don’t know how close it is. I hear it like you hear it that it’s close, but that is the fight for the division.
“Lomachenko-Haney is a great fight, but not anywhere near as big as Tank against Ryan Garcia. For me, that’s one of the biggest fights in the sport.
“Devin, it’s only a matter of time before Devin moves to 140 because when we were working with him, I knew how tough it was for him, but he’s an extreme professional. It’s going to be really interesting for him now.
Do you vacate and move to 140, and everyone will say that you’ve run from Lomachenko, or do you stay and fight him at 135? It’s a 50-50 fight.
“I think Top Rank also has some guys at 140. They lost Zepeda, and they lost the WBC title. But they have Josh Taylor at 140, and there are some other belts that are starting to become vacant.
“I hope Devin Haney stays at 135 for one more against Lomachenko. It’s a great fight for boxing, and I believe Devin Haney can win that fight,” said Hearn.
