WBC light welterweight champion Devin Haney posted on social media today, saying he’s focusing on “creating generational wealth” with his career ahead of his April 20th title defense against Ryan Garcia at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
The desire for financial security is understandable on Haney’s part, but not at the expense of providing a poor product for boxing fans, watching him feast on lesser oppoisition without risking his hide.
Becoming wealthy by taking risky fights against talented opposition is admirable for a fighter, but it’s less respectable when a fighter is hand-picking guys they know they can beat. For example, Haney is the favorite in his fight against Ryan (24-1, 20 KOs), and almost no one expects him to lose.
Calculated Matchmaking, Predetermined Outcomes
In Haney’s last fight, he fought a 35-year-old Regis Prograis, who was coming off a controversial win over the unknown second-tier fighter Danielito Zorrilla. Haney isn’t fighting the guys in 50-50 fights where you know who is going to win, and he’s NEVER been in a contest where he was the underdog. Why? Because that’s not what his career is about.
He’s not old school. He’s more like Floyd Mayweather Jr., taking fights where the outcome is preordained.
Some fans see Haney’s comment about focusing on creating “generational wealth” as a signal that he’s being a sneaky opportunist, weaving himself around dangerous threats like Subriel Matias, Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, and Shakur Stevenson.
Instead of fighting the killers that could wreck Haney’s goal of creating “generational wealth,” he’s fighting Ryan Garcia, Regis Prograis, Joseph Diaz, and a much smaller Vasily Lomachenko. What does that say about Haney?
“Staying focused.. creating generational wealth,” said Devin Haney on X, talking about the philosophy behind his boxing career.
The Call for True Challenges
Ideally, once Haney gets past Ryan, he’ll turn over a new leaf and start facing the best of the best, looking to create a true legacy that actually means something. He’ll break out of the cherry-picking mode that he’s been in since turning pro in 2015.
Haney is too big to return to 135, so you can forget about him fighting Shakur, Gervonta Davis, or Abdullah Mason; what he should do is move up to 147 or 154 and fight Boots Ennis, Tim Tszyu, and Terence Crawford. Those fights would show whether Haney has the talent to be a true superstar and not a fake, manufactured one he currently is.