By Adam Baskin: Regis Prograis says his fight with Devin Haney isn’t official yet because Devin’s side of the contract hasn’t been signed yet for their December 9th fight.
Mike Coppinger reported yesterday that the Prograis vs. Haney contest is “set for Dec. 9” for DAZN pay-per-view, but Regis says that’s not reality, that Devin hasn’t signed the contract yet.
Obviously, this wouldn’t be the first time that someone has jumped the gun for a fight involving the tough to negotiate with Haney (30-0, 15 KOs).
“I signed the contract five weeks ago, six weeks ago. I’m just waiting for the other side,” said Regis Prograis to Fight Hub TV about his fight against Devin Haney. “Yeah, we just waiting on that now, that’s all.
“Ain’t nothing a done deal until both sides is official. It can’t be a done deal. Anyway, we’re not worried about that right now.
If the fight isn’t made, it’ll be interesting to see who Haney will fight because he’s eager to capture a belt at 140, but there aren’t any viable options right now.
Haney can’t go in the direction of WBA light welterweight champion Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero because he’s injured, and he’s already been ordered to face his mandatory Ohara Davies next. Once Rolly gets over his injury, he’ll be stuck fighting Ohara unless he can find a way to weasel out of it.
If Haney wanted to show the boxing world that he’s not the cherry picker that many see him as, he’d take on IBF light welterweight champion Subriel Matias and at least try and capture his belt.
Picking 35-year-old Prograis as the champion to win a belt from at 140 makes Haney look vulture-like, picking off vulnerable prey.
Fighting WBO 140-lb champion Teofimo Lopez isn’t an option because Haney needs a title in his possession to get the purse split that he desires.
It’s not enough for Haney to enter into negotiations with Teofimo as a former undisputed champion. When you’re no longer a four-belt champion, you can’t use that to boost your credentials. It’s ancient history.
Devin needs a belt at 140 before going into the talks with Teofimo, and his victory must be conclusive, not another controversial decision as we saw in his last fight against Vasily Lomachenko.
Practically, the whole world saw Haney lose that fight except for the judges. So it’s important that Haney win without controversy this time and ideally get another win under his belt before he enters negotiations with Teofimo.
Bay Area… December I’m coming!
— Devin Haney (@Realdevinhaney) September 9, 2023
