Devin Haney looks enormous, packing on a lot of weight since his victory over WBC light welterweight champion Regis Prograis 23 days ago on December 9th last month.
Right now, he looks like he’s considerably heavier than the 165 lbs that he rehydrated for his fight with Prograis. Judging by how Haney looks, he’s at least 180+ lb range, and that ain’t good for him.
It’s nice that Devin is enjoying his victory over the fossil Prograis, but he’s got back from the eating he’s doing because he could live to regret it.
Haney looks like someone who is power-feeding right now, devouring whatever he sees, be it cakes, cookies, or whatever is in sight. The way that he’s putting on weight, you have to wonder whether he’s aware of the impact it’ll have on his career.
If Haney eats himself out of the 140-lb division, his chances of success against the killers at 147, 154, 160, or 168 are slim without cherry-picking.
Vacation Bulking: Cause for Alarm?
Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) looks like he’s been eating high on the hog, enjoying his victory over the 35-year-old Prograis, but it could be trouble ahead for him if he hopes to get back down to 140 for a title defense against Ryan Garcia in the first quarter of this year.
Devin has been on vacation in Saudi Arabia, perhaps looking to make a deal for him to fight over there for big money, but the pictures show that his eating is getting out of control.
It’s not surprising that Haney is putting on a lot of weight, as he’s another example of a fighter who competes four to five divisions below his natural size.
Is Haney exploiting the System?
It’s what some fighters do nowadays to game the system to get an unfair advantage against opposition that can’t boil down the same without it killing them.
In theory, if there were mandatory fight-day rehydration limits for ALL fights, it would prevent fighters from rehydrating massive amounts of weight as they are now.
It would fix the system. However, even with rehydration limits set, fighters would find a way around it by using IVs to pump the water weight back quickly. They’re not supposed to do this, but it’s impossible to stop.
Fighters would have to compete in divisions natural for their frames. You wouldn’t see the weight bullies like we do now.
Thankfully, there aren’t a lot of weight bullies in the sport because it’s so difficult for a fighter to drain down without it hurting them. Haney is considered one of them, and some believe David Benavidez is another fighter who competes well below his natural weight.
The fighters that physically can pull off this feat in draining down 25 to 40 lbs of water without it affecting their performance or putting them in the hospital can find success, beating up on smaller opposition.
If Haney were forced to fight at Super Middleweight, it would be food for the top fighters in that division. Haney wouldn’t do well if he had to fight guys his own size, like David Morrell or Canelo Alvarez.
Devin can forget about Tank Davis fight
As for the Gervonta Davis fight that Haney and his dad, Bill Haney, have been pushing for nonstop, they can forget about it. Tank isn’t going to go up to 140 and then face a fighter that rehydrates to 170+ lbs.
If you’re Tank, do you really want to fight a guy who will walk into the ring looking as big as light heavyweight Dmitry Bivol on the night?
With Tank being the A-side, he can’t insist that Devin agree to come down to 135 or meet him at a catchweight and have a rehydration clause thrown in because he can’t physically do it.
Even if Devin did agree to all that, he can no longer cut weight down to 135, and he might not even be able to make 140 after this.
Once a fighter starts putting on weight on a regular the way Haney is, they can’t cut down.
