Devin Haney dominated from start to finish but was unable to grind down gritty Cuban veteran Yuriorkis Gamboa at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida, on Saturday night.
Scores were 120-107 (twice) and 118-109 as Haney returned to the ring after shoulder surgery following a points win over Alfredo Santiago in November 2019.
“I knew coming in that he was gonna do a lot of holding. I hit him with big shots and whenever he was hurt he would hold and he would get scrappy,” said WBC lightweight champion Haney (25-0, 15 KOs). “But that was just him being a veteran and knowing how to survive and being in a lot of big fights.
“I want the big fights, I want to make these big fights. Fighting someone like Gamboa was a stepping stone but I’m here for the big fights. Teofimo Lopez is the one with the rest of the belts, so that’s the main one I want to make happen.”
Photo: Melina Pizano/Matchroom USA.
Still just 21, Haney had hoped to make a statement stoppage following eye-catching wins by rivals Teofimo Lopez and Gervonta Davis in recent weeks, but a suffocating Gamboa (30-4, 18 KOs) spoiled and held firm.
Haney dictated with a stellar jab to head and body before unloading with gusto in the fourth, landing a flush right hand, but Gamboa never budged. Gamboa tried to stem the tide by hitting on the break before he was sternly warned by referee Telis Assimenios later in the session.
Photo: Ed Mulholland/Matchroom USA.
The speed and finesse of Haney always held sway but he was unable to break the body or spirit of the smaller Cuban. He reeled off combinations, but Gamboa never seemed too troubled and posed a few problems in the second half of the fight with his inside work.
Haney’s jab returned to the fore in the ninth as Gamboa continued to spoil and the veteran drew a final warning from the referee for his repeated clinching in the 10th. A point was finally deducted in the 11th for the continual infractions, but Gamboa heard the final bell without too much duress.
It was a solid night’s work for Haney, but greater challenges lie ahead.
Photo: Ed Mulholland/Matchroom USA.
On the undercard, rising Croatian heavyweight Filip Hrgovic (12-0, 10 KOs) became the first man to halt Detroit survivor Ryder Booker, courtesy of a fifth-round victory.
Never previously stopped, Booker (26-4, 13 KOs) looked to spoil and survive the course but the thudding blows of Hrgovic gradually wore him down. The Croatian scored a knockdown in the second with a chopping right hand before referee Samuel Burgos told Booker after the fourth that he would stop the fight without greater activity.
The finish swiftly followed in the fifth with Booker under fire and having no chance of victory.
Photo: :Ed Mulholland/Matchroom USA.
Former Chinese Olympian Zhang Zhilei (22-0, 17 KOs) made a successful Matchroom debut with an emphatic fourth round win over Devin Vargas.
Southpaw Zhang dropped Vargas (22-7, 9 KOs) with a flush left cross that immediately ended the fight with the American staying down, claiming an injured knee.
Photo: Ed Mulholland/Matchroom USA.
Main image: Melina Pizano/Matchroom USA.