Super lightweight champion Devin Haney caused a stir on social media when posting an image weeks after his clash with Regis Prograis.
“The Dream” defeated Prograis for his WBC championship on December 9. The victory marked another significant landmark in Haney’s career.
Haney’s triumph came a year after the San Francisco fighter became undisputed at lightweight.
The two-weight king uploaded a picture on his Instagram less than four weeks later. Some believed Haney had piled on a bucket load of weight.
Devin Haney image shocks fans
“Devin Haney just posted this on Instagram. Buddy looks at least 190 pounds,” said one comment.
Another added: “There’s no way this is Devin Haney.”
The image was corroborated by other photos uploaded by Haney simultaneously. However, the boxer had removed the original picture that fans began circulating.
And whether there had been any doctoring of the image couldn’t be ruled out. Haney did blow up from 140 to 165 pounds on the night, so he should be hovering around the 170 mark in his time off.
Haney is enjoying some downtime. In separate images, he looks healthy and nowhere near that overweight.
The furor comes a few days after Haney was pictured in the presence of tigers when feeding them with sticks. He then rode scrambler motorbikes, played soccer, and visited a mosque.
It’s all part of Haney’s plan to be refreshed when he returns to the gym. After beating Prograis, Haney was relieved to prove the doubters wrong.
“I just showed I’ve got it all. I’ve got the power, speed, everything. It just depends on what I want to do,” said Haney.
“I’m a complete fighter. But [critics] are always going to say something. First, they said I couldn’t sell. I just sold out [16,000]. They said I had no power. I went in there and dropped him [Prograis] early, hurt him multiple times. What are they going to say now?”
Haney vs Garcia
On what’s next, he added: “I don’t know, I put it in Allah’s hands. I’m not rushing anything. I’m still young, 25 years old.
“It’s only a matter of time until I’ll be number one on that pound-for-pound list, but I’m climbing the ladder.
“I want to take some time off and spend some time with the family. I had a hard training camp. I’ve been in training camp for ten weeks.
“I’ve been very disciplined and focused. I want to take some time off, rest, relax, and let my body recover.”
As WBN prepares to confirm the Fighter of the Year for 2023, Haney sees himself as the favorite. “I feel like, at this point, I should be Fighter of the Year.
“But also, not only that, they don’t want to give my dad credit, but I think he deserves Trainer of the Year.
“When they mention the best trainers in boxing, I don’t understand because they never mention my dad. But he is the best trainer in boxing, and it showed.”
Early talks with Ryan Garcia and his team have occurred for a potential spring battle. Updates are expected soon.
