DEVIN HANEY is earning the sort of comparisons that would leave a weaker boxing prospect crippled with expectation.
The millennial generation are comparing the 20-year-old interim WBC lightweight champion to his undefeated 50-0 Las Vegas mentor Floyd Mayweather.
The sport's elder statesmen are hoping the 23-0 starlet, with the All-American smile and incredible work ethic, can emulate his father and trainer Bill’s idol, Sugar Ray Leonard.
The best news is British fight fans will be able to make their decision on his chances very soon as Haney, who visited SunSport HQ last week to help promote his next fight on November 9, wants to fight in England in 2020.
And the orthodox stylist, who shattered the cheekbone of September 13 victim Zaur Abdullaev during his fourth round win, wants to live up to the hype surrounding him.
Gazing across the London skyline he believes he will soon rule, the babyfaced 20-year-old said: “Those comparisons are a real blessing because they are two real greats of the sport, they’re living legends.
“My dad’s idol was Sugar Ray and mine was Floyd so I would love to have a little bit of both.
“Floyd has taught me so much about the sport of boxing and staying focused. I am thankful for all the wisdom he has given me.
“It’s like being a young basketball fan and being able to shoot hoops and get advice from Michael Jordan. That is how big Floyd is and I am thankful to him for everything.”
After crushing his Russian challenger last time out, Haney called out pound-for-pound king and unified 135lbs champ Vasiliy Lomachenko.
However, the brilliant Ukrainian is solely focused on becoming the undisputed boss, by collecting the IBF belt at the start of 2020 and returning to his more natural weights of feather and super-feather.
Luckily, long-time rival and fellow Mayweather protege Gervonta Davis has just moved up to Haney’s division while Luke Campbell is in his crosshairs for his UK debut after he took Loma the distance last month.
He said: “I want to fight Lomachenko, I think that fight is perfect for me and it is the perfect time. I hope that we can make it but, if not, I am still just focused on being a world champion.
“The 135lbs division is packed, there are a lot of big fights for me to be involved in, that is why I am not in a rush to move up.
“I believe in 2020 you will see me fight over here and I hope we can make that fight with Luke Campbell.
"I thought he put up a good performance against Loma in August and showed some flaws and vulnerabilities, things I could capitalise on.”
“The less punishment you take the longer you last in the sport” -Floyd Mayweather Jr.#DevinHaney X#FloydMayweather
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Happy Father’s Day to my right hand! Thank you for everything! Love you forever! @bh_the_great ❤️?
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Wow a throw back! Happy Birthday Money May! @floydmayweather
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Haney’s incredible promise and profile would be less surprising if he had come from an esteemed boxing family or been old enough to go for gold for the USA at the 2016 Olympics.
But the San Francisco-born starlet turned professional aged just 17, with a series of fights in lawless Mexican small halls, under the guidance of his music-exec father.
The unorthodox route was a huge and dangerous gamble but rock-hard Haney toughed it out, so it’s amazing to hear how one little look from his dad can still turn his stomach.
He said: “The best thing about working so closely with my dad is that he knows me better than anyone and that is very important in a sport like boxing. I have tried working with different trainers but I have never felt that the chemistry is there.
“The worst thing about being trained by my dad is eating in front of him, I hate eating anything in front of him.
“He won’t even say anything, he will just stare at me and at the food. He will just keep his eyes on me and that will put me off, I cannot eat after that.
“Compared to that, starting my career in Mexico was easy. It was intimidating going over there because I had heard a lot of negative things about corruption there but I trusted my talent.
“The crowds over there were definitely against me but it made coming back to fight in America a piece of cake.
“Over there, every punch I threw was ignored, every punch I took was cheered. But in America it's a total reverse now, every punch I land the crowd goes crazy.”
Good work with my U.K. homie ?? #USA X #UnitedKingdom #3weightChampion X #TheDream
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Haney’s only UK trip before this whistlestop PR tour, that included a few rounds of sparring with Scotland’s three-weight icon Ricky Burns, was in 2012 when he came over to watch the London Olympics aged just 13.
Without promoter Eddie Hearn’s credit card to enjoy back then, the teen was on an economy flight and in a budget hotel.
So it’s amazing what seven years and 23 faultless fights can do for a starry-eyed kid with huge dreams and an even bigger appetite for success.
After jetting into the UK in first class, Haney compared his two London trips, saying: “Boy I am living lavish now!
“The hotel I stayed at this week is a lot nicer than when I visited last time for the London Olympics.
“It felt good to be back in London, I have been getting a lot of love and people have been stopping me in the street, it has caught me off guard, but it’s a blessing.”
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