Shakur Stevenson has weighed in with a prediction for the upcoming clash between Devin Haney and Vasiliy Lomachenko – and is backing his countryman to come out on top.
Haney and Lomachenko will do battle for the undisputed lightweight world championship on May 20th, and Stevenson is heavily tipped to face the winner.
Speaking to FightHub TV, Stevenson said he believes Haney’s size will prove too big an obstacle for the skilful Ukrainian to overcome.
“I think Devin is too big for Lomachenko, I think he’s going to smoke him.
I’m ready to fight whoever wins.”
Haney became undisputed champion at 135lbs with an emphatic win over George Kambosos Jr in Austrailia last year, before cementing his status with an equally impressive victory in the rematch.
Lomachenko was a unified world champion at the weight before being unseated by Teofimo Lopez, however has bounced back well with wins over Masayoshi Nakatani, Richard Commey and Jamaine Ortiz.
Stevenson announced his arrival to the lightweight division earlier this month, delivering an impressive stoppage win over Shuichiro Yoshino in his native Newark.
Many feel Stevenson is already a lightweight world champion in waiting, having already picked up the accolade at both featherweight and super featherweight.
However, there is a view that Haney may move up in weight to super lightweight after the bout with Haney, having been visibly tight at 135lbs for both his fights against Kambosos last year.
A fight with Stevenson seems inevitable regardless, with many speculating that the Olympic silver medalist himself is destined to move through the weights over the next few years.