Devin Haney wasn’t sensational but he was thorough.
The secondary lightweight titleholder had hoped to replicate the spectacular performances of rivals Teofimo Lopez and Gervonta Davis but had to settle for a near-shutout decision over 38-year-old Yuriorkis Gamboa on Saturday in Hollywood, Fla.
Haney (25-0, 15 KOs) dominated his shorter, slower and older-by-17-years opponent from the beginning. He fought behind his long jab, which allowed him to pick Gamboa apart and keep him at a distance.
And on the occasions when Gamboa was able to find a way inside, he generally ran into hard, accurate counters.
That was the pattern of the fight, although there was a third element: holding. Gamboa, whose mission seemed more and more hopeless as the fight progressed, relied on tying Haney up to avoid punishment. He lost a point for holding in Round 11.
The only positive thing one could say about Gamboa’s performance was that none of Haney’s power shots hurt him, which might also say something about the victor’s power given that the Cuban had been down 11 times in his previous 10 fights.
The scores were 120-107, 120-107 and 118-109. Boxing Junkie scored it 119-108 for Haney.
“I thought I put on a world class performance,” Haney said. “Of course, I wanted the knockout. He’s a crafty veteran, he did a lot of holding trying to survive. It is what it is.”
The lightweight division is the hottest in the sport, in large part because of the recent performances of Lopez and Davis. Lopez outpointed Vasiliy Lomachenko to win all four major 135-pound titles on Oct. 17. And Davis, who stopped Gamboa in 12 rounds last December, knocked out Leo Santa Cruz with one punch on Halloween.
Haney, who fancies himself the best lightweight, wanted to keep pace with them. Gamboa (30-4, 18 KOs) just wouldn’t allow it.
Haney, poised beyond his 21 years, was in no hurry to get the stoppage. He boxed beautifully for most of the fight, content to land his jab and eye-catching shots when they presented themselves.
In the later rounds, when it was clear that Gamboa had little to no chance and was slowing down, Haney picked up his pace in an attempt to deliver a memorable finish. However, when a veteran like Gamboa wants to survive, it’s difficult to get it done.
Haney was particularly aggressive in the 12th round and landed some big shots. Gamboa was just clever and resilient enough to end the fight on his feet.
“I wasn’t surprised at all,” Haney said. “I knew he’d come in and be scrappy, do anything to survive. That’s what he did. … That’s just him being a veteran, knowing how to survive, him being in a lot of fights.
“… At times I did get a little reckless. I wanted the knockout. Just with him being a crafty opponent, he knows how to survive, knows how to take big shots, knows how to hold on.”
Of course, Haney could also focus on a number of positives. He won easily, which is the primary goal. His surgically repaired right shoulder held up nicely. And he said he experienced no ring rust even though he had been out of the ring for almost exactly a year.
Now it’s on to bigger and better things, which means one of the big names in the near future – Lopez, Davis or Ryan Garcia being prime targets.
Which one does Haney want most?
“There are a lot of big fights out there,” he said, “but Teofimo Lopez is the one with the rest of the belts. That’s the one I want to make happen.”
[vertical-gallery id=15383]