Devin Haney and his father, Bill, are now looking toward Teofimo Lopez after being left at the alter by Ryan Garcia for their next fight.
The decider for WBC light welterweight champion Devin’s next fight is Bill, who says he’s interested in a fight with WBO champ Teofimo (19-1, 13 KOs), but he still must win his title defense next month against #11 Jamaine Ortiz on February 8th.
Devin & Bill’s intended target, Ryan Garcia, pulled a U-turn shortly after a late-night run with Floyd Mayweather Jr., announcing that he plans on facing WBA 140-lb champion Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero next for his belt and giving his promoter Oscar De La Hoya his marching orders to make it so.
Haney Ready for Teofimo When He’s Ready
“Listen, whenever Teo’s ready,” said Bill Haney to Fighthype about his desire to make the Devin vs. Teofimo fight next. “He’s got work to do with Jamaine Ortiz.”
Teofimo surprised many fans by choosing to face fringe contender Jamaine Ortiz for his first title defense of his newly won WBO light welterweight title.
Ortiz was beaten a year ago by Vasily Lomachenko, making his unlikely challenger to be given a title shot against Teofimo.
The decision by Teo to fight Jamaine comes across like a cherry-pick move because IBF 140-lb champion Subriel Matias & #1 WBO ranked contender Arnold Barboza Jr. were both available and interested in fighting him.
It suggests that Teofimo still lacks the confidence he once had before he was humiliated by George Kambosos Jr in 2021. Teo finally returned from that loss to defeat former undisputed light welterweight champion Josh Taylor last June, but that was a gimme, as the Scottish fighter is viewed as damaged goods since his grueling war with Jose Ramirez in 2021.
Other Options for Haney
If Bill feels brave, he can always match Devin against IBF 140-lb champion Subriel Matias (20-1, 20 KOs), the boogeyman of the light welterweight division. The Puerto Rican destroyer labeled Haney as a “Chicken” this week when talking about how the top fighters in the division are avoiding him.
It would look good on Bill’s part to show some courage to shake the opportunist reputation he and Haney are getting by going in the direction of Matias.
Even if Haney gets knocked out and exposed by Matias, he will have shown that he’s not just a guy who picks out old guys and social media boxers to make easy money. Haney hasn’t fought anyone that had huge power like Matias during his career, and it would be fun for fans to see if he could hold up under the shots from the KO artist.