Devin Haney should think twice about agreeing to promoter Eddie Hearn’s plan to challenge IBF light welterweight champion Liam Paro for his belt on December 7 in Australia.
Wrong opponent, wrong timing
Paro (25-0, 15 KOs) is the wrong guy for Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) to fight through a bad beating against Ryan Garcia on April 20th. Haney should be warned that the money he gets for the Paro fight will not be worth it. Devin’s value will drop for future fights after Paro comes through with him on December 7th.
The money Haney, 25, will get to fight Paro in Australia will be good because of PPV in that country, but Devin may regret his decision for a long time when he is knocked out.
We know Haney wants to be paid well for his fights after being spoiled by the wealth he made from his clash with popular social media star Ryan last April, but getting the stuffing beaten out of him by Paro, 28, will the cash does not make. worth it
Besides Paro being too powerful for Haney to fight in his first fight back, there is also the issue of the weight. Haney rehydrates 20+ lbs for his fights at 140, and comes in over 160+ lbs on the night of his fights.
Even if Hearn can work his magic to maneuver a way for Haney to deviate from the IBF’s 10-lb rehydration rule, it will still be difficult for Devin to make 140 and be strong on fight night against Paro .
IBF’s uncompromising stance
The IBF is a no-nonsense sanctioning body, and they won’t agree that Haney-Paro fight is unification because Haney holds the WBC Champion in Recess tag. This is not a title. This is a placeholder tag that allows former champions to line up to fight for their old belts against the new champion.
Haney will not be able to use this as a method to avoid the IBF’s 10-lb rehydration rule, meaning he will make weight for the secondary weigh-in on the morning of the fight.
Haney will be so exhausted on the day of the fight that Paro will beat him around the ring and drop him repeatedly like Ryan Garcia did. However, in this case, there won’t be a referee saving Haney like there was in the Ryan fight. We don’t see the action stop with Paro getting a point for striking on the break.
