Devin Haney is the man to beat in the lightweight division, and has said he’s open for all comers.
Following a career best but somewhat controversial win over Vasily Lomachenko, the 24-year-old now faces the decision to stay at the weight or make a long-discussed move up.
Should he remain at 135lbs, fans will call for one of his next fights to be against Gervonta Davis, but broadcaster Stephen A Smith has warned him against such matchmaking.
Speaking on Hotboxin’ with Mike Tyson, the ESPN pundit said ‘Tank’s power would be a problem for Haney.
“I project. That’s the business that we’re in. It’s not just about what you did, it’s about what you’re gonna do. And I see Gervonta Davis. And I look at Haney and I’m like this – you don’t want no part of Gervonta Davis. You wanna stay away from that brother.
Because Haney gets hit too much, and you can’t do that against Tank Davis. You can’t do it. That’s gonna be a problem.”
Smith went on to recount a story he had heard about Davis tagging Haney in sparring and the champion’s team stopping the session for a break before they got back to it.
He’s confident that if ‘Tank’ hits him like Lomachenko could, it’s a different ending entirely.
“I look at Haney’s boxing skills, I look at what his father Bill Haney did in training him for that Lomachenko fight. I think he did an exceptional job.
But my point is Lomachenko isn’t a power puncher, and he was the smaller guy, and he stung Haney a few times. If that’s Tank, that’s a different problem that I don’t think Haney wants any part of.”
Davis is fresh out of prison after serving time for breaching house arrest terms stemming from a hit and run case. Prior to that, he scored an impressive stoppage victory over previously undefeated Ryan Garcia.
He’s not being mentioned with Haney currently, who has potential suitors at super lightweight in Regis Prograis and Teofimo Lopez, or could stick around at 135 to defend his own belts against Shakur Stevenson.