Fight against Prograis
According to CompuBox stats, in his fight against Prograis, Haney landed 129 of 367 punches, while his opponent only managed to land 36 of 323. The latter was a CompuBox defensive record for a 12-round fight, and Prograis was only able to get over two punches in more than four full rounds.
Haney told The Sporting News: “I was definitely able to show more of my repertoire in that fight. I think people are starting to realise how great I am. Every fight, I’m constantly improving, and this fight will be no different. The world will recognise my talent again after this and they will see how exceptional Devin Haney is once again. I just keep progressing, getting stronger and maturing. The lightweight division is where I belong.”
Although the fight against Prograis marked Haney’s debut in the super lightweight division, he managed to knock the bigger man down with a single right hand in the third round. After that blow, Prograis showed no rush to close the distance, allowing Haney to comfortably dominate the remainder of the fight.
Move to super lightweight
The champion is certain that his move to super lightweight has been hugely beneficial to his performance, especially after struggling to make 135lbs. However, he refuses to accept that Garcia’s weight cut to 136lbs for his fight against Gervonta “Tank” Davis is a valid excuse for his knockout defeat last April.
“I’m much stronger and faster. I feel comfortable and I don’t have to kill myself in camp,” Haney said. “I don’t focus on weight, I focus on improving and perfecting my craft. That’s the main thing, it’s not just a weight-cutting camp.
It’s been more than four years since Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) has had a knockout victory. That came in his showdown against Zaur Abdullaev (TKO 4), just before he was crowned world champion. Since then, he has racked up eight unanimous decision wins, with only Vasiliy Lomachenko being a real challenge in that time.
When talking to him, it’s clear that Haney would like to end the knockout drought and sees “King Ry” as the perfect match. “We’ve seen Ryan get reckless. We know he gets reckless and too anxious. If he gets too anxious, he’ll run into something.”