Devin Haney Hunting a Fight with Vasyl Lomachenko!
All signs point towards a matchup between undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney (29-0, 15) and
Vasyl Lomachenko (17-2, 11 KOs) at some point in 2023. After taking a hiatus from the sport to be with his comrades in Ukraine, as they’re presently at war with Russia, Lomachenko made a triumphant return to the ring with a unanimous decision win over Jamaine Ortiz (16-1-1, 8 KOs) on October 29 at Madison Square Garden Theater.
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An interested observer in attendance was one Haney. He conceded that he was in the building for a
reason. When asked about the possibility of fighting Lomachenko by ESPN, the 23-year-old made it clear what he wants to do.
“I want to make the biggest fights. This is something that I’ve been stressing for so long. I’ve been
calling out Loma. Loma didn’t give me a shot when I was his mandatory. But, it is what it is. The fans want to see the fight. I’m here to make it.”
Haney cites the obstacles he had to overcome to become an undisputed champ as evidence that he wants to fight the best in and around his division. To his point, he took less money and fought at the then-unified champion George Kambosos’ home country of Australia to make that achievement in June 2022. Then, he fought a contractually obligated rematch with Kambosos (20-2, 10 KOs), again in Australia, on October 15.
Top Rank has both Haney and Lomachenko in the fold. You have a mutual interest between the fighters.
The matchup is also a point of discussion on boxing social media and message boards.
On paper, it makes sense for both men. You would have two elite craftsmen pitting their skills against
one another. All that’s seemingly left is the negotiation process. That step can be tedious and a hassle, but the hope is that it goes as smoothly as possible. Fingers crossed by all sides this talked-about fight becomes a reality early next year.
By: Michael Wilson Jr.
