By David Robinett
Oscar de la Hoya, Floyd Mayweather, the Klitschko Brothers, Miguel Cotto, and…Devin Haney?
Most boxing fans know that the 19-year Haney is one of the most talented young American boxers in the professional ranks, and the aforementioned icons of the sport represent an elite level of success in the ring that all young contenders aspire to.
However, there is one title in common with these names that Haney has already earned, which is that of “promoter.”
In addition to taking the next step up in competition when he faces former title challenger Juan Carlos Burgos (33-2-2, 21 KOs) this Friday at Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, California, on ShoBox: The New Generation, the undefeated Haney (19-0, 13 KOs) is promoting the show, having recently obtained his promoter’s license from the California State Athletic Commission.
“I’ve been saying for a while now that I always felt like I was my own promoter,” explained Haney. “And I feel like a lot of other fighters are their [own] promoter as well because they do all the marketing, they do their social media, and they’re getting their name out there. I’m just one of the fighters that took the initiative to actually go get my promoters license and go all the way with this.”
The precocious Haney is not content with just producing an event to showcase his own talent, but he also envisions the newly minted Devin Haney Promotions as maintaining an entire roster of young fighters, and he is not wasting anytime starting this phase of his company.
“I’m working with one fighter right now, Darren Cunningham,” announced Haney. “He’ll actually be on the card [this Friday] as well, he’s 6-0. I want to keep a stable of many more fighters.”
Haney was quick though to emphasize his primary focus is on Burgos, the second consecutive jump in the caliber of competition as he progresses up the proverbial contender’s ladder towards a title shot, more likely sooner than later. Earlier this year in May, Haney toyed with the well-regarded Mason Menard, prompting a corner stoppage after nine rounds of a one-sided beating that most experts expected to be more competitive.
“I was very happy with my performance [against Menard],” observed Haney. “I’d give myself an ‘A.’ I went in there, stuck to the game plan, and I did everything I needed to do.”
When asked if he expected a tougher challenge, Haney did not betray any doubts he may have had going in. “I went in there very confident. I knew my ability, and that if I went in there and just fought like myself, I knew how it would play out, and it did.”
One notable aspect of Haney’s performance against Menard was his reliance on his jab, where over nine rounds he landed more jabs than power punches, which was in complete contrast to his previous two fights where the jab was nearly an afterthought.
“I knew that he was a big puncher and that the jab was going to be the key to win,” Haney explained, regarding his strategy against Menard. “If I would have went in there trying to knock him out and trying to go blow for blow, who knows how the fight would have went. My dad set up a great game plan, to go in there and use my jab, stay calm and use my right, and that’s pretty much what I did. I was having fun, I got comfortable and I started letting my hands go.”
Haney acknowledged though that Burgos, as his most accomplished opponent to date, correspondingly presents the biggest challenge of his young career. “This guy, he’s much different than Menard. I feel like he’s my toughest opponent to date,” Haney confessed. “I know he feels like he’s been at a much higher level than me and he’s much more experienced than me, so I know he’s going to come in there with a lot of confidence.”
“I’m going to go in there and pretty much go with the flow and see what happens,” Haney continued. “One thing about me is that I have so many different styles and one of my strongest attributes is being able to adjust to whatever a fighter brings to me. So, I’m going to go in there and see what’s he’s got and whatever it is, I’ll adjust.”
Haney, thinking more and more like a promoter, also admitted he was eager to improve upon the performance put on by potential future rival and WBC/IBF lightweight champion Mikey Garcia, who defeated Burgos in 2014 but not before overcoming some difficult moments against the hardcore veteran in the early rounds before earning a decision victory.
“It’s not only about getting wins, it’s about looking good doing it. I want to show the world who I am, what I’m made of it,” explained Haney. “Especially since he [Burgos] put up a great fight with Mikey Garcia, I feel like I want to go in there and top that. How you look is very important. If I get a guy hurt, I’m going to go for the knockout, I’m going to look to finish him off.”
If all goes as planned and he emerges victorious this Friday, the sky is the limit for Haney, both inside and out of the ring. “If it was up to me I’ll fight every month but as I move up in the ranks that’s obviously not possible, but I would love to stay busy as much as I can,” said Haney.
With another convincing win this week, Devin Haney Promotions likely won’t have much difficulty generating demand for its headline fighter.
Haney vs. Burgos, a ten-round lightweight bout for the vacant IBF North American lightweight title, is the main event on this Friday’s ShoBox: The New Generation at the Pechanga Resort Casino. The telecast begins at 10:00pm ET/PT and is presented by Devin Haney Promotions and Ringside Tickets Inc.