Eddie Hearn has named Devin Haney as a possible opponent for one of his top welterweight talents, who expects to be fighting for world honours before long.
There is much uncertainty surrounding Haney’s next outing, with the WBO champion having not fought since dethroning Brian Norman Jr in November.
Back then, ‘The Dream’ became a three-weight world champion in comprehensive fashion, scoring a third-round knockdown before claiming a wide points victory.
Haney was then in negotiations with WBA welterweight champion Rolando Romero, only for their unification showdown to collapse for no specified reason.
More recently, the 27-year-old has been heavily linked with a move to Dana White’s Zuffa Boxing, perhaps hoping to revisit the Romero fight under a different promotional banner.
Either way, Matchroom promoter Hearn has already suggested Haney as a potential opponent for Paddy Donovan, who has just edged a majority decision against former world title challenger Karen Chukhadzhian.
In truth, it was a far more convincing win than the scorecards reflected, as Donovan secured two knockdowns and largely outboxed the former two-time Jaron Ennis opponent.
As a result, the Irishman is set to become the IBF mandatory challenger to Lewis Crocker, who must first defend his title against Liam Paro on June 24.
Rather than waiting around for Crocker, though, Donovan has told Pro Boxing Fans that his promoter, Hearn, is already suggesting the likes of Haney – and other “big names” – as possible opponents.
“I will become a world champion … We just spoke with Eddie. Eddie said we can have Haney; we can have a lot of big names. They’re all there. I’ve got myself back in a position to fight for a world title.”
While he may have another fight in the interim, Donovan is likely to wait patiently for his mandated shot at Crocker – should he retain against Paro – in a trilogy bout after previously suffering two controversial defeats to the Belfast man.
