By Jim Calfa: Undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney says he’s expecting challenger Vasily Lomachenko to make it a “dirty fight” when the two meet on May 20th on ESPN PPV from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Haney says he heard that Lomachenko (17-2, 11 KOs) is training to rough him up in the clinch so that he can shut down the clinching game that he uses.
“We got to see. I can’t speak for him. He’s shown interest in fighting me before. He could have fought me before,” said Devin Haney to the media when asked about fighting Ryan Garcia.
“A dirty fight. I think Loma wants to make it s dirty as possible. He is a dirty fighter. He has skills, but he relies on dirty tactics. So, I think he’s going to make it a ugly and dirty as possible.
“My main focus right now is Loma and being victorious in that fight, and then we’ll go from there,” Haney continued. “He [Lomachenko] has the experience, ring generalship. I know he’s training for a dirty fight, a scrappy fight.
“He wants to get in and get as dirty as possible on the clinch. That’s what I’ve heard he’s training for. We’re just preparing for whatever he brings to the table, but we know what type of fight that he wants.
“His last performance wasn’t his best performance. He showed that he was aging [against Jamaine Ortiz], but he was also out of a war. There was a lot on his mind. We’re preparing for the best Loma on the night. We’re watching his best performances.
“Even before he showed flaws and was calling anything, I was still calling Loma out years and years ago. It’s a blessing. I’m happy I’m falling getting my shot at it,” said Haney when asked about his thoughts, knowing he’s finally facing Lomachenko after all these years.
“It feels good that the tables have turned, and I’m now the guy giving him the shot, and I’m happy that I get to prove myself. I told him to fight me then because the longer he waits, the worse it would get, and I think it’s just a very, very bad time for him to fight me.
“He’s delusional,” said Haney when told that Lomachenko still views himself as undefeated. “He lost not once but twice. Teo beat him clear. The fight with Salido was close, but Teo beat him clear. I don’t care what he says. He can say he got an injury or whatever the f**k he wants to say.
“He came on late in the fight, but you had the injury the whole twelve rounds. He went in there and fought scared, and he lost versus Teo. So I don’t want to here s**t about him having no losses. That man isn’t undefeated. He lost twice, and he’s going to lose again on May 20th.
“I seen today that Bob [Arum] said, ‘The smart bet is to put your money on Loma.’ Put his money up then. Let’s see. Tell him to put his money up if he feels like that. Like I said, he can put his money up, and we’ll see how smart the bet is,” said Haney.
