Bob Arum Uses Taylor vs Lopez Winner As Resigning Incentive For Devin Haney!
Undisputed lightweight champion Devin “The Dream” Haney (29-0, 15KO) has stated a desire to stay in the division. However, Top Rank’s Bob Arum is looking to lure him to move to junior welterweight with a title opportunity.
BOB ARUM WOULD LIKE DEVIN HANEY TO RESIGN
While speaking with Probox TV, Arum understands The Dream will be a free agent after fighting Vasyl “Hi-Tech” Lomachenko. Moreover, he is willing to offer a title shot against the winner of Josh Taylor versus Teofimo Lopez as an incentive to resign.
“It depends on the fight. It depends on what anybody has to offer him, and if it makes sense for us. If Haney wins or loses, he’s going to go up to 140 pounds. We have the winner of [WBO champion] Josh Taylor and Teofimo Lopez. So, I think that’s somewhat attractive to him. We’ll see what we see.”
Arum has mentioned in the past about Haney moving up to clear up room for two-divisional champion Shakur “Fearless” Stevenson to take over the division. Yet, the undisputed champion has entertained the idea of facing Stevenson and has no problem with the uber-talented two-division champion calling him out.
RELATED: Devin Haney On Shakur Stevenson: “He’s Definitely On The Hitlist!”
DOES HANEY NEED TO RESIGN WITH TOP RANK?
Arum could be on to something, especially if Lopez is victorious over Taylor. There is a long standing history of animosity between Haney and Lopez, where The Dream threatened to go up to face his amateur rival before the Loma bout.
On the other hand, Haney wouldn’t need to re-sign with Top Rank to get the fight if victorious over Hi-Tech. Per the WBO rules, a champion moving up in weight skips the line and goes start to the top as a mandatory challenger.
Boxing fans will have to wait to see what happens after Haney and Lomachenko lock horns live on ESPN Pay-Per-View on May 20.
Be the first to comment