Devin Haney can still recall the day when he received word that he was named WBC lightweight champion by default.
It wasn’t at all the plan he had in mind, not even at age 20 when most boxers in his position would gladly accept the easiest path to their first major title. His goal at the time was to challenge then-unified lightweight titlist Vasiliy Lomachenko. The roles are now reversed, where Haney now gets to defend the undisputed crown versus the former three-division titlist.
Agreeing to the fight was never a concern for Haney. Neither was the manner in which he plans to make him pay for the matchup taking this long to come to fruition.
“He made me wait four years to fight him, since I was 20 years old,” Haney noted during the first part of ESPN’s Blood, Sweat & Tears: Haney vs. Lomachenko series which premiered Sunday. “I don’t like Loma. I want to beat him bad. I want to send him into retirement.”
Haney (29-0, 15KOs) will defend his fully unified lightweight title reign versus Ukraine’s Lomachenko (17-2, 11KOs) atop a May 20 ESPN Pay-Per-View event from MGM Grand Garden Arena in Haney’s current hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada.
As noted by Haney, the fight was first eyed by the unbeaten American in 2019. Lomachenko claimed the vacant WBC title and defended his WBA and WBO lightweight belts in a twelve-round, unanimous decision win over England’s Luke Campbell in their August 2019 battle of Olympic Gold medalists. Haney claimed the interim WBC lightweight title just two weeks later in a fourth-round stoppage of Zaur Abdullaev, who was unbeaten at the time of their September 2019 clash in New York City.
Lomachenko was subsequently named WBC ‘Franchise’ titlist at the request of promoter Top Rank in October 2019 during the WBC’s annual convention. Haney was upgraded to full titlist, having since defended the belt six times including his twelve-round win over then-unbeaten lineal, WBA, IBF and WBO titlist George Kambosos Jr. to fully unify the lightweight division last June 5 in Melbourne, Australia.
Ironically, Haney landed the Kambosos fight in place of Lomachenko, who was unable to commit due to his obligation to serve in the Ukrainian military in defense of the ongoing Russian invasion. Haney turned the opportunity into a lucrative three-fight deal—two trips to Australia and now his long-desired showdown with the Ukrainian southpaw who has been on his radar since he first entered the title picture as a growing 20-year-old.
Haney is viewed by bet365 sportsbook as a -275 favorite to prevail over Lomachenko, eleven years his senior and who enters as the challenger and as the smaller fighter. It’s unfamiliar territory for the two-time Olympic Gold medalist and former three-division titleholder who is normally afforded a position of power in nearly every title fight since his June 2014 WBO featherweight title win over Gary Russell Jr.
“Loma has never been the underdog,” noted Haney. “This time, he fighting the champion. The bigger guy, the stronger guy, faster guy, younger guy. All odds are stacked against him.”
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox