Devin Haney’s father, Bill, is dismissive of light welterweight champions Subriel Matias and Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz, saying they would be “stay busy fights” for Dev. Yeah, right.
Bill says IBF 140-lb champion Matias (20-1-1, 20 KOs) and WBA champ Pitbull Cruz (26-2-1, 18 KOs) are “both the same” for Devin. It seems like an obvious move by Bill to downplay two risky options for Haney.
I see this as a blatant attempt on Bill’s part to set up a soon-coming duck job by Devin to avoid Cruz and Matias for a lesser threat.
That’s hard to believe, considering how good these fighters are offensively and the toughness they would bring to a fight against WBC 140-lb champion Haney, who struggles when fighting opponents who pressure him hard the way these guys would.
“Either one of them. They’re both the same,” Bill Haney told Thaboxingvoice when asked who he wants Devin Haney to face between Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz and Subriel Matias.
“All these fights I see for Devin are ‘stay busy’ fights,” said Bill.
The Blueprint Exists, Bill
Vasily Lomachenko had his way with Haney when he was pressing him, and we all saw what Gervonta Davis did to Devin in their sparring session when he applied nonstop pressure. Haney unraveled from the heat those two fighters put on him, and he looked completely stressed.
Tank Davis created the blueprint on how to beat Haney, which Lomachenko partially followed. Matias and Pitbull followed that blueprint to the letter and did not let up with their pressure.
Haney still needs to take care of Ryan Garcia on April 20th before his wheeling & dealing father, Bill, can start looking towards lining up his next fight.
Is Devin Ducking Welterweight Trouble?
Devin recently changed his mind about moving up to 147 to potentially fight Mario Barrios for the WBC interim welterweight title, saying that he wants to stay at 140 to become the undisputed champion in a second weight division.
Some see Haney’s decision to stay at 140 as a way to avoid fighting IBF welterweight champion Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, who signed with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing promotional company this week.
If Haney moved up to 147, Hearn would be chomping at the bit to match him against Boots Ennis, and Devin would look weak in his and the public’s eyes if he turned him down.
So, to avoid that unpleasantry, Haney is staying at 140, where the fights are less risky but still tough for him if he pursues his desire to become the undisputed champion.