Haney aims to shine in lightweight title defense vs. Linares, the best foe of his career

They meet Saturday night on DAZN

As talented as WBC lightweight world titlist Devin Haney is, and as much potential as he has, the 22-year-old realizes he still needs to face bigger names to burnish his reputation.

Although Haney holds a 135-pound world title, he has yet to face top opposition but he wants to and will take a major step up in class for his third defense, which will come against battle-tested former three-division titleholder Jorge Linares in the main event of a Matchroom Boxing card on Saturday (DAZN, 8 p.m. ET) at the Michelob ULTRA Arena at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.

Haney acknowledged that Linares, who has won world titles at featherweight, junior lightweight and lightweight and faced several top opponents, stands as his best foe to date and knows that without a strong performance there will be criticism.

“This is the time I’ve been waiting for,” Haney said at the final pre-fight news conference on Thursday. “This is the moment and my time to finally shine against an incredible opponent (who) thinks he can put up a good fight and win against me. This is a huge opportunity for me. This is time to show everything I’m made of.

“Like Jorge said, this is a whole new level but I’m ready for it. It’ll be a very dominant performance. I think the world will be surprised at what kind of performance it is. I think even Jorge will be surprised at what type of fighter I am.” 

While Linares (47-5 29 KOs), 35, a Venezuela native, has had his ups and downs and been stopped in all of his losses, he is vastly experienced, still has speed and remains an outstanding counter puncher.

Bill Haney, Devin’s father and trainer, said they have tried to make fights with other name opponents but have been rebuffed until Linares was willing to fight.

“As you know, we’ve always talked about getting Devin in that right fight that will catapult his career,” he said. “We believe Jorge Linares is that guy. We’re thankful to Linares for stepping up and giving Devin that opportunity to once and for all show that he’s an elite fighter.

“We have appreciation for (promoter) Matchroom (Boxing) and how long you’ve been patient. We’ve both tried to get those names in the ring. Finally, now on Saturday, we have that name in Jorge Linares. We hope that he comes and brings his all. We hope to have a healthy and very competitive Jorge Linares, so Devin actually can show he’s an elite fighter.”

Haney’s first defense came against then-undefeated but unknown Alfredo Santiago in November 2019. Haney won a shutout decision and scored a knockdown but he didn’t impress, mainly due to the fact that he was hampered by a shoulder injury suffered in the fight. In his second defense this past November, Haney (25-0, 15 KOs), of Las Vegas, faced faded former featherweight titlist Yuriorkis Gamboa and won a near-shutout decision that elicited some criticism.

Bill Haney hopes that his son can shine on Saturday against his best opponent.

“These are the kind of fights that bring out the best in a fighter -- a young fighter like Devin with so much in his toolbox, arsenal full of different kinds of punches,” he said. “It’s just a great opportunity. We want Jorge to come at his best and bring out those things so we can showcase to the people what a wonderful talent he is.

“You’ll see Devin make a statement. He’s ready for this moment. It’s a euphoric moment. Now we get a chance to be on the big stage, our home away from home in Vegas.”

Linares has won two fights in a row since a shocking first-round knockout loss to Pablo Cesar Cano in January 2019 in an ill-fated move up to junior welterweight that lasted for only that fight. He will be in his first world title bout since May 2018, when he gave then-pound-for-pound king Vasiliy Lomachenko problems and knocked him down before losing his belt by 10th-round stoppage.

“I feel much better than before (title fights) against Kevin Mitchell, Anthony Crolla, Vasiliy Lomachenko,” said Linares, who trained in his home away from home in Japan. “I think this is the best and more important training camp – a big opportunity in my life.

“I’ve fought a lot of big fights, 52 fights, in England, USA, Latin America. This time I’ve come back to Las Vegas at the Mandalay Bay. It’s an amazing fight against an amazing young champion. It’s so exciting to show everyone who I am, how much experience I have and how good I feel. I respect Haney’s comments, thinking about after this fight, talking about (Teofimo) Lopez and everyone in the lightweight division. Me too, I’m thinking about being a champion again and then fighting with the best in the division. There’s a lot of good opponents and champions. I need to be ready for that again.”

Haney has no plans to allow Linares to be the one in the mix for even bigger fights after Saturday.

“I’m happy he said this was the best training camp and he’s in the best shape of his life,” Haney said. “I want the best Jorge Linares so when I win that there’s no excuses, and the world knows he came in 100 percent.”

Photo: Ed Mulholland/Matchroom Boxing