Last night (Dec. 4), the boxing world was in for a treat, as they saw undefeated Devin Haney enter the ring to defend his WBC lightweight title. Going into the fight with a 26-0 record and 15 knockouts, not many doubted Haney's ability to pull through once more.
His challenger Joseph Diaz Jr. entered the night with a 32-1-1 record, also with 15 knockouts. Diaz was ranked No. 7 in the lightweight division ahead of the fight, to Haney's No. 3.
Diaz Jr. went the distance, and took the fight to decision. However, it was clear that Haney's jab and punching efficiency was superior to Diaz Jr.'s efforts, and the judges scored the fight unanimously in favor of Haney, winning 117-111, 116-112, 117-111.
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After the fight, Devin acknowledged Diaz Jr.'s talent, but maintained that he could take a hit just as well as he could deliver one: "He said he was going to bring the dog out of me, and that's exactly what he did. He hit me with some good shots. They say I have no chin, but I think I showed it in this fight."
As he put on a show in MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Haney knew what the fans wanted to see: "We got into some great exchanges. I wasn't shy to exchange with him. I want to entertain the fans."
Now, the 23-year-old Haney will look to capture the top spot in the division, hoping to fight t-No. 1 George Kambosos Jr. Kambosos was in the crowd last night, and is currently deciding who he wants to fight next between Haney, No. 3 Gervonta Davis (pending his fight today, Dec. 5) and t-No. 1 Vasiliy Lomachenko (pending his fight next Saturday, Dec. 11).
While Kambosos reiterated he wants his next fight to be in his homeland Australia, Haney asserted he would fight any time, any place: "I'll go to Jupiter if I got to. Come on, George Kambosos, let's do it for all the belts. The real undisputed [champion]. Let's do it next. No more dispute with who's the WBC champion."
Things are heating up the lightweight division, and there is sure to be a lot of great boxing on the horizon.