Devin Haney didn’t get a chance to scratch off all the names on his lightweight hit list but he came fairly close. The 24-year-old is proud of his wins against George Kambosos Jr. and Vasiliy Lomachenko, but he knows that there are a few that got away.
Shakur Stevenson, of course, was a showdown that Haney entertained before making the move up in weight. Another fighter that the Las Vegas resident wanted to get his hands on was Gervonta Davis.
For now, both Davis and Haney will compete in separate weight classes. With Haney officially moving up to the super lightweight division, the chances of him fighting Davis are getting slimmer and slimmer.
From Haney’s point of view, however, there’s no reason why a matchup vs. Davis has to be completely taken off the table. Although Davis has fought most of his career at 135 pounds or lower, Haney points to the cameo Davis made at super lightweight in 2021.
“It would have to happen at 140,” Haney told Ariel Helwani when asked about a future matchup. “He’s fought at 140, he beat Mario Barrios at 140. I’m at 140 now. It would make the most sense for it to be at 140.”
Moving back down in weight is ostensibly out of the question. Haney has grown tired of sucking down in weight to tip the scales at 135 pounds and is looking forward to sharing the ring with Regis Prograis in his super lightweight debut.
If a showdown against Davis has any shot at coming to fruition, Haney has made it clear that Davis will have to make a second trip to 140 pounds. At 135, many will point to Haney’s IBF, WBC, WBO, and WBA titles as a bargaining chip in negotiations. The 24-year-old, nevertheless, simply doesn't believe that he’s lost any leverage now that he’s beltless.
At times, Davis has been apathetic toward winning world titles. While he has grabbed at least a secondary trinket in three weight classes, cashing big-time checks and being a part of the biggest events have grabbed his interest.
For Haney, he isn’t a world titleholder at 140 pounds. That may very well change come December 9th, but for now, his empty world title case at 140 shouldn’t be an impediment to a showdown with Davis.
“Tank is the type of fighter that said he doesn't care about belts. He fights for money. So he wouldn’t care about the belts at 135. He would just wanna make the money so 140.”