Notebook: Trainer Bill Haney says son Devin will be fine without him at Kambosos fight

Jesus Ramos seeks family vengeance on Davis-Romero card; Morrell answers Benavidez's call; Quick hits; Show and tell

May 25, 2022

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If there has been one constant in Devin Haney’s life and career it has been Bill Haney, his father and trainer.

Yet, when Devin gets in the ring for by far the biggest fight of his career, the man he looks to for guidance is unlikely to be there offering counsel and direction.

Devin, who holds the WBC lightweight title, arrived last week in Australia ahead of his undisputed championship unification fight with three-belt world champion and Australia native George Kambosos Jr., but Bill is not there and unlikely to be.

He has so far been denied a visa to enter Australia due to a drug conviction some 30 years ago, long before his son was even born. But Australia has strict immigration rules and he is resigned to the prospect of not being in his son’s corner when he and Kambosos fight on June 4 in American prime time on ESPN at the 50,000-seat Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, where the fight will be on pay-per-view in the Australian afternoon of June 5.

As hard as it was, Bill saw his son off to Australia and said he believes he will thrive in the situation.

“It’s two things that happened,” Bill said during an interview with ESPN’s Mark Kriegel on Saturday night during the Top Rank card headlined by the Janibek Alimkhanuly-Danny Dignum interim middleweight title bout. “Devin gets better when he faces adversity. This was a 1992 conviction that was well before he was born, but I think that this is now going to propel Devin to bring out the best in Devin. It was hard to let him go though.

“I would say that it’s just like sending away your kid to go to college, but that wouldn’t be true. It’s a little bit more than that. But when it comes to sending away your kid to go to war it’s not quite as extensive as that. It’s a whirlwind of emotions that we’ve been going through as a father and son and as a trainer and a fighter, but we plan to overcome this adversity like we have every time before.”

He said Devin (27-0, 15 KOs), 23, of Las Vegas, who will be making his fifth title defense, told him before he left not to worry.

“Devin said he assured me that he was going to go and he was going to bring back the belts and that it wasn’t going to be any problem,” Bill said.

It is not 100 percent certain that Bill won’t be able to travel to Australia, although it does not look good. There are people working on his behalf in an effort to get him a visa.

“I’m optimistic about maybe even me eventually being able to go out there,” Bill said. “It’s still up in the air. I haven’t been totally denied, but in the event I’m not able to be there, there’s suggestions on what way I can talk to him in the corner. But he’ll be ready. That’s the main thing.”

They plan to, at the very least, speak to each other via video conference in the dressing room before the fight. In Bill’s place, assuming he ultimately cannot make the trip, will be Yoel Judah, a close friend of the Haney family and a noted trainer in his own right. He trained his sons as pro fighters, including Zab Judah, who won world titles at junior welterweight and welterweight, where he was the undisputed champion.

“It’s always been a great relationship,” Bill said. “Zab is Devin’s godfather. Their relationship was blessed in front of God. Yoel has been like a grandfather (to Devin). He’s been like a father figure to me both in this boxing game and the way that we approach life and being 100 percent behind our sons, so I knew Yoel was going to be the perfect fit to go to war. Yoel is not going to shy away from that moment. That moment is not going to intimidate him. He’ll be ready to go and ready to deliver any messaged needed to Devin.”

Kambosos (20-0, 10 KOs), 28, will be making his first defense after outpointing Teofimo Lopez in November in a fight of the year contender to take his belts in a major upset.

Ramos goals: Shine, revenge

Junior middleweight Jesus Ramos is one of the top prospects in boxing and he aims to live up to the buzz surrounding him against upset specialist Luke Santamaria on the Gervonta Davis-Rolando Romero undercard on Saturday (Showtime PPV and PPV.com, 9 p.m. ET, $74.99) at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

“I feel ready. We added Larry Wade as our strength and conditioning coach, so our team is growing,” Jesus Ramos said. “Little by little, we’re getting better and better. It’s fair to say that I’ve never been in better shape. I feel strong and I’m ready for whatever Luke Santamaria brings on fight night.

“This is a big card that everyone is looking forward to. It’s a great privilege to me and I’m not taking it lightly. I’m coming at my best and I’m coming to perform.”

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Ramos (18-0, 15 KOs), 21, of Casa Grande, Arizona, will also be looking for a little family vengeance since Santamaria (13-2-1, 7 KOs), 24, of Garden Grove, California, won a 10-round unanimous decision over former welterweight world title challenger Abel Ramos, Jesus’ uncle, in an upset in his last fight on Feb. 5. Santamaria also owns two other upset wins — a decision over former two-division titlist Devon Alexander in the fight before he beat Abel Ramos and one over Mykal Fox two fights before that.

“It was a close fight but I don’t think Santamaria beat my uncle Abel Ramos in their fight in February,” Jesus said. “Santamaria was hurt a few times, but it is what it is. I feel like he’s got a false confidence coming into this fight because of that. I don’t think that’s going to help him at all.

“I have to make a big statement and show the whole division that I’m here to stay. That win over Vladimir Hernandez (on Feb. 5 on the Keith Thurman-Mario Barrios card) is going to lead to bigger things and that’s what I need to show.”

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Morrell goes after Benavidez

After super middleweight David Benavidez knocked out David Lemieux on Saturday night to claim the vacant WBC interim belt in the Showtime main event, he called out former titlist Caleb Plant, middleweight titlist Jermall Charlo and secondary super middleweight titlist David Morrell, all fellow PBC fighters, who he called “bitches.”

Morrell Jr. (6-0, 5 KOs), who has advanced very quickly because of a deep amateur background with the Cuban national team, took exception to the comment from Benavidez (26-0, 23 KOs).

“I ain’t no bitch and you’re going to find out,” Morrell said. “I’m from Cuba and I’m not afraid to fight you. I've beaten bigger and better fighters than you. So, right after this fight I got coming up, get your ass ready.”

Morrell, 24, a southpaw, who left Cuba and now fights out of Minneapolis, is scheduled to defend his belt Kalvin Henderson (15-1-1, 11 KOs) on Showtime in the Stephen Fulton Jr.-Danny Roman co-feature on June 4 in Minneapolis.

“I have business to handle of June 4th against Henderson, a fight I’m taking very seriously,” Morrell said. “After that, I’m on the hunt for Benavidez’s head. There is no bitch in me. After my fight, I’m gonna make (Benavidez) my bitch. No need to talk no more. I’m gonna show you better than I can tell you.”

Quick hits

Before the Gervonta Davis-Rolando Romero telecast begins on Saturday (Showtime PPV and PPV.com, 9 p.m., $74.99), Showtime will stream two preliminary bouts featuring Mayweather Promotions’ fighters on the Showtime Sports YouTube page beginning at 7 p.m. ET. Milwaukee junior middleweight Luis Arias (19-3-1, 9 KOs), 31, will face Jimmy Williams (18-7-2, 6 KOs), 35, of New Haven, Connecticut, in a 10-round fight and welterweight prospect Jalil Hackett (3-0, 2 KOs), 19, of Washington, D.C., will face Carson, California, native Jose Belloso (4-0, 4 KOs), 29, in a six-rounder.

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The brief discussions between Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn and Top Rank about matching British welterweight up-and-comer Conor Benn (21-0, 14 KOs), 25, with former unified junior welterweight titlist Jose Ramirez (27-1, 17 KOs), 29, of Avenal, California, have ended. Top Rank vice president Carl Moretti told Fight Freaks Unite that Hearn made an offer that was not close to what they would have needed to make the fight and the talks quickly ended. Hearn has said repeatedly he hopes to sign a top name to face Benn in his next fight.

The WBC set the date for a purse bid for the fight between unified junior welterweight champion Josh Taylor (19-0, 13 KO), 31, of Scotland, and mandatory challenger Jose Zepeda (35-2, 27 KOs), 32, of La Puente, California, a former two-time title challenger, for June 10. The sides do figure to make a deal ahead of a purse bid since Top Rank promotes Taylor and co-promotes Zepeda.

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum took to social media to wish former junior lightweight world titlist Jamel Herring good wishes for his retirement. “Jamel Herring, The Fighting Marine, has been a great credit to the sport of boxing,” Arum wrote. “He has always conducted himself with dignity, and if he stays retired, he will go on to a great career in whatever he chooses to do next. I am proud to have promoted him these past four years.” Herring (23-4, 11 KOs), 36, a 2012 U.S. Olympian, announced his retirement soon after a 10-round decision loss to Jamiane Ortiz on Saturday night, his second loss in a row. Top Rank signed Herring in 2018. He won the WBO 130-pound title in 2019 and made three successful defenses before losing it to Shakur Stevenson by 10th-round knockout in October.

British light heavyweight contender Anthony Yarde (22-2, 21 KOs), 30, is anxious to get a second title shot with his goal to face fight winner of the three-belt unification bout between Artur Beterbiev and Joe Smith Jr., who square off June 18 at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York. “I am going to keep a close eye on it when they fight each other and I will be looking to destroy the winner,” said Yarde, who suffered an 11th-round knockout loss to then-WBO titlist Sergey Kovalev in August 2019. “I definitely feel in a better place. The reason I feel in a better place is because I have gained more experience and I have been at that level before.”

Show and tell

Now that Canelo Alvarez has made the decision to return to super middleweight and defend the undisputed title against Gennadiy Golovkin in their long-awaited third fight, he will not be facing light heavyweight titlist Dmitry Bivol in a rematch. After losing a unanimous decision to Bivol in an upset on May 7, Alvarez had the contractual right to an immediate rematch, but he ultimately decided to pass on that option in favor of a bigger, more lucrative, more winnable third fight with GGG. So, for the time being at least, there is only one Canelo-Bivol fight and here is a full ticket in my collection.

Devin and Bill Haney photo: Al Powers/Matchroom Boxing; Ramos photo: Ryan Hafey/PBC; Morrell photo: Sean Michael Ham/PBC

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