Devin Haney vs. Jorge Linares - 29 May 2021

[margaret thatcher]

lopez in a different league to him right now for me

he had a hard enough time with ol' jorge

[coneye]

so much talk of haney being special, but everytime i watch him he just seems to lack something for me


Yeh ,,, Just seems to be something missing , Enough pop in his punches maybee ,,, but he dominated the early rnds through youth and speed ,, Later on he gave rnds away , and looked hurt once or twice , twas a good fight , and Haney a clear winner , but did'nt have it all his own way ,,, Lopez beats him for me , and so does Lomencheko

[KiwiRider]

lopez in a different league to him right now for me

he had a hard enough time with ol' jorge

Yep, that's his current level. Showed it tonight. Any belt you think he can challenge?

[maverick23]

Really good fight and a good show too. The Ward fight was good as was the second half of the Quigley fight. Shame Cameron’s opponent was so overmatched though.

I thought Haney looked total class in the first 6 rounds. Jab was great and his accuracy was was really good too. He then stopped using his feet and stayed right in the pocket far too much. Yet his doesn’t have big power in his shots whilst Linares does so it was a stupid decision for me. I understand he wanted to blast Linares out and make a statement but he’s got a lot to learn about working in a clinch.

He seemed stuck between 2 different styles and almost found out the hard way after getting hurt late. If he’d stuck to the style of the first 5 or so rounds then I think he wins the fight more clearly but then may be criticised for not going for the stoppage or being exciting so he’s in a tough position. May also not help hearing 2 sets of instructions in the corner.

I had the fight 117-111. I find it really difficult to give Linares 5 rounds though so not sure which 5 rounds that one judge gave him. Really good learning fight for him though.

I think he beats Loma now, Tank is a 50/50 whilst Lopez beats him.

[Ruthless-RKO]

[handsofstone]

Good fight i enjoyed it, had it 116-112 Haney, looked like it was heading for near landslide but after Linares rocked Haney with that right at end of 10th, it was a struggle to the finish, Haney's legs never came back and he held and spoiled for last 2 rounds


Haney looked good before that though, jab was outstanding, uppercuts were quality, for the most part defensively he looked good, Linares was dangerous with that left hook counter but Haney done a good job of keeping that right glove tucked up most of the time, credit to Linares he's still sharp himself and never stopped coming forward, Haney learned more here than all his other fights combined

[DrDuke]

so much talk of haney being special, but everytime i watch him he just seems to lack something for me


he also made history back to back by being the only guy to beat linares and gamboa by decision, 8 of their 10 losses by ko except to dev

devon 'the decision' !

Nothing special indeed. A labouring win over the shabby guy, whose credibility became quite questionable.

[NoScoutingReports]

Enjoyable fight that, more so than I expected. First half of the fight Haney looked extremely sharp, firing home counters and making Linares miss fairly regularly, jab was nice too but to be fair to Linares he showed he still has something left to offer, more so than I thought at 35 I must admit. Loved that short right hand from Jorge at the end of the 10th, that lands thirty seconds earlier in the round and it could have been curtains for Devin, he was hurt quite badly it seemed. Devin ended up spoiling through to the finish but I have to say I was willing Linares to find a home for the right hand again, love a veteran/underdog come from behind story.

Quigley and Mosley Jr was decent earlier in the night, pretty well matched opponents and Fuzile looked more than useful in bouncing back after the Rakhimov loss.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Full card highlights.

[Boxerbeetle]

Decent card, I enjoyed bits of the Ward fight and the second half of the Quigley fight (scored that a draw, but could easily have gone either way). Stupidly managed to spoil the result of the Haney fight for myself as accidentally clicked on Twitter between the 9th-10th and the first tweet I saw was Fat Dan summarising the fight and result, fml. All in all, definitely worth my £1.99 for the month.

[milpool]

Just watched it, I had Haney 116-112. If only Linares had shown a bit more early on, he might have taken the wind out of Haney’s sails earlier than he did because Haney was definitely clinging on in the end.
To be fair, Haney looked very good in the early rounds but I suspect the other top lightweights will be licking their lips at how Haney was taking some heavy shots and unraveling in the championship rounds.
Decent scrap, Linares is probably finished at very the top level but still showed flashes of brilliance. Haney on the other hand, he’s still young and he’ll learn from this.

[stujones]

I didn't see the bill....but catching Hearns ifl interview after, he is really about the global brand now. 18 months ago he would have been hyping up and showing support for Ward "we will bring him back up" "time to regroup and we will be back" now hes just so less forgiving, basically saying well he had his chance, he might as well retire. Hes also not really shown support for his one time #1 prospect in world boxing Josh Kelly.

Obviously he is working out the £££ but I hope he doesnt neglect UK boxing and not just be like Don King in his pomp and just stand with the winner

[jameswilson]

I didn't see the bill....but catching Hearns ifl interview after, he is really about the global brand now. 18 months ago he would have been hyping up and showing support for Ward "we will bring him back up" "time to regroup and we will be back" now hes just so less forgiving, basically saying well he had his chance, he might as well retire. Hes also not really shown support for his one time #1 prospect in world boxing Josh Kelly.

Obviously he is working out the £££ but I hope he doesnt neglect UK boxing and not just be like Don King in his pomp and just stand with the winner

It seems he has long term contracts with very few boxers. Whyte and AJ may be amongst the only ones. Even going back guys like Anthony Crolla were on fight by fight deals. It does seem a case of if you don’t want to be with me I won’t work hard for you, if you do I’ll work hard for you provided you’re winning.

The Majidov and Otha Jones losses recently cement what you’re saying. There’s that winner stays on line he’s used.

Obviously if you’re a huge ticket seller or ppv star it’s different. Dave Allen and Shannon Courtenay are the only exceptions to these rules that I can think of, they have lost or lost multiple times and kept getting opportunities.

[stujones]

I didn't see the bill....but catching Hearns ifl interview after, he is really about the global brand now. 18 months ago he would have been hyping up and showing support for Ward "we will bring him back up" "time to regroup and we will be back" now hes just so less forgiving, basically saying well he had his chance, he might as well retire. Hes also not really shown support for his one time #1 prospect in world boxing Josh Kelly.

Obviously he is working out the £££ but I hope he doesnt neglect UK boxing and not just be like Don King in his pomp and just stand with the winner

It seems he has long term contracts with very few boxers. Whyte and AJ may be amongst the only ones. Even going back guys like Anthony Crolla were on fight by fight deals. It does seem a case of if you don’t want to be with me I won’t work hard for you, if you do I’ll work hard for you provided you’re winning.

The Majidov and Otha Jones losses recently cement what you’re saying. There’s that winner stays on line he’s used.

Obviously if you’re a huge ticket seller or ppv star it’s different. Dave Allen and Shannon Courtenay are the only exceptions to these rules that I can think of, they have lost or lost multiple times and kept getting opportunities.

I think Whyte is, or at least was, on a fight by fight deal and I've no idea who is Chisora's but he is another who obviously appears regularly on matchroom bills with multiple defeats.

But before Dazn, he would have a loyalty to UK fighters who, well not sure if they were big ticket sellers, but he seemed to "like" and were hard working. Guys like Masher Dodd, Gavin Rees, Jason Cook, Crolla, Paul Smith, Brian Rose...whether their deal was long term or short term were always given the "we will come again". Martin Ward has been with matchroom from the word go I believe, so i thought it was a bit sad (although respectfully honest) that Eddie basically said he ain't world class he might as well retire....I just hope he doesnt lose that loyalty and also remember the loser and not just cast them aside ala King. How many of the above names would Eddie now have the patience to "rebuild " after they have found their level .

[coneye]

I didn't see the bill....but catching Hearns ifl interview after, he is really about the global brand now. 18 months ago he would have been hyping up and showing support for Ward "we will bring him back up" "time to regroup and we will be back" now hes just so less forgiving, basically saying well he had his chance, he might as well retire. Hes also not really shown support for his one time #1 prospect in world boxing Josh Kelly.

Obviously he is working out the £££ but I hope he doesnt neglect UK boxing and not just be like Don King in his pomp and just stand with the winner

It seems he has long term contracts with very few boxers. Whyte and AJ may be amongst the only ones. Even going back guys like Anthony Crolla were on fight by fight deals. It does seem a case of if you don’t want to be with me I won’t work hard for you, if you do I’ll work hard for you provided you’re winning.

The Majidov and Otha Jones losses recently cement what you’re saying. There’s that winner stays on line he’s used.

Obviously if you’re a huge ticket seller or ppv star it’s different. Dave Allen and Shannon Courtenay are the only exceptions to these rules that I can think of, they have lost or lost multiple times and kept getting opportunities.

I think Whyte is, or at least was, on a fight by fight deal and I've no idea who is Chisora's but he is another who obviously appears regularly on matchroom bills with multiple defeats.

But before Dazn, he would have a loyalty to UK fighters who, well not sure if they were big ticket sellers, but he seemed to "like" and were hard working. Guys like Masher Dodd, Gavin Rees, Jason Cook, Crolla, Paul Smith, Brian Rose...whether their deal was long term or short term were always given the "we will come again". Martin Ward has been with matchroom from the word go I believe, so i thought it was a bit sad (although respectfully honest) that Eddie basically said he ain't world class he might as well retire....I just hope he doesnt lose that loyalty and also remember the loser and not just cast them aside ala King. How many of the above names would Eddie now have the patience to "rebuild " after they have found their level .

Probably not many , He's too busy going international ,

[ironbeard]

I didn't see the bill....but catching Hearns ifl interview after, he is really about the global brand now. 18 months ago he would have been hyping up and showing support for Ward "we will bring him back up" "time to regroup and we will be back" now hes just so less forgiving, basically saying well he had his chance, he might as well retire. Hes also not really shown support for his one time #1 prospect in world boxing Josh Kelly.

Obviously he is working out the £££ but I hope he doesnt neglect UK boxing and not just be like Don King in his pomp and just stand with the winner

That is harsh given the gifts and skill level of Fuzile, and the fact that Ward still had a fighting chance before getting his knee messed up. Ward will never be a world beater but he is a respectable pro.

Has anyone heard how severe the knee injury turned out to be?

[margaret thatcher]

the more eddie internationalizes, moves shows outside the uk, and draws from the global talent pool, the less need he has to push british/euro level home guys like ward

appealing to hardcore fans or local attractions among the uk boxing scene simply becomes less of a priority

[margaret thatcher]

ya it's worth pointing out that fuzille looked absolutely f@cking gold in his loss until he got caught and finished. up to that point he was outclassing and beating up shak far worse than jo jo diaz did at any point


as for ward, i just dont think he's tough enough even for fringe level contenders, but he can be a player on the euro and brit scene still

[KiwiRider]

[quote="margaret thatcher" post_id=5560885 time=1622426174 user_id=361826


as for ward, i just dont think he's tough enough even for fringe level contenders, but he can be a player on the euro and brit scene still
[/quote]
Wardy looked really fragile, that was only a clip on the jaw for the first KD. Had him bimbling about like a newborn foal.
His skill set is great, and age-wise he should be absolutely peaking.
I thought he could mix it on world level, even after Tennyson cleaned his clock, when Wardy should have cleaned his.
Brit level. But great to watch.

[maverick23]

[quote="margaret thatcher" post_id=5560885 time=1622426174 user_id=361826


as for ward, i just dont think he's tough enough even for fringe level contenders, but he can be a player on the euro and brit scene still

Wardy looked really fragile, that was only a clip on the jaw for the first KD. Had him bimbling about like a newborn foal.
His skill set is great, and age-wise he should be absolutely peaking.
I thought he could mix it on world level, even after Tennyson cleaned his clock, when Wardy should have cleaned his.
Brit level. But great to watch.
[/quote]

Yeah - and that’s how they’ll match him going forward - good tough fights at domestic level and I’m sure that if he wins 3 or so in a row then they’ll be looking to get him back up the rankings.

Fuzile’s a really good fighter and it was an even fight until the end of the fight/injury. Certainly no disgrace. It would have Wardy to have been a bit more active in preparation for this but he can come again.

I get the impression with Eddie that he’s not willing to do the really easy rebuilding fights that have happened in the past. If someone loves when they step up then bring them back in competitive fights still. Let’s see what happens with Ward.

[KiwiRider]

I get the impression with Eddie that he’s not willing to do the really easy rebuilding fights that have happened in the past. If someone loves when they step up then bring them back in competitive fights still. Let’s see what happens with Ward.

Yes, he has been letting some of his fighters sink or swim on their second chance . It's the way it should be really. Better than letting a guy collect dust after losing the hallowed "0". That totally sucks. Ward is great to watch, well I think so.

[maverick23]

I get the impression with Eddie that he’s not willing to do the really easy rebuilding fights that have happened in the past. If someone loves when they step up then bring them back in competitive fights still. Let’s see what happens with Ward.

Yes, he has been letting some of his fighters sink or swim on their second chance . It's the way it should be really. Better than letting a guy collect dust after losing the hallowed "0". That totally sucks. Ward is great to watch, well I think so.

Yeah - I like him too. Seen him fight a few times live before and always enjoyed his fights.

He’s not world class at the moment and there’s nothing wrong with that. In the 4 belt era, I don’t remember a time like it is now where there are so few weak world champions.

He can drop back down to European/British level and still have decent fights and make money. He’ll just have to adjust his mindset that a world title win may not happen. He could fight Zelfa Barrett, Kiko Martinez, try and get a fight with Cacace. Could also look to move to lightweight where a fight with Maxi Hughes would be a good one.

[mickey1975]

I don't think Eddie is going to be as busy on the domestic front once hes left Sky, hence not too bothered about getting a few of our lads beat. I really think dinners with Dana and being part of the Canelo show has gone to his head a bit. Matchroom Media is going to ruin his 'mate' Kugan.

[stujones]

I don't think Eddie is going to be as busy on the domestic front once hes left Sky, hence not too bothered about getting a few of our lads beat. I really think dinners with Dana and being part of the Canelo show has gone to his head a bit. Matchroom Media is going to ruin his 'mate' Kugan.

It could bite him on the arse though. It would be a trickier decision for a British amateur wanting to turn pro. Never seen any of our very best amateurs sign for Arum or King from the get go.

The top US promoters are domestic promoters...Eddie's got to be careful he doesnt spread himself too thinly...the bread and butter should be the uk

[maverick23]

I don't think Eddie is going to be as busy on the domestic front once hes left Sky, hence not too bothered about getting a few of our lads beat. I really think dinners with Dana and being part of the Canelo show has gone to his head a bit. Matchroom Media is going to ruin his 'mate' Kugan.

It could bite him on the arse though. It would be a trickier decision for a British amateur wanting to turn pro. Never seen any of our very best amateurs sign for Arum or King from the get go.

The top US promoters are domestic promoters...Eddie's got to be careful he doesnt spread himself too thinly...the bread and butter should be the uk

I think his focus will be on quantity rather than quality. Maybe look to do 20 shows a year in the U.K.

As a company Matchroom are used to holding events all over the world so they should be able to do it better than most but you’re right - they may take their eye off the ball re: their U.K. shows which is a risk.

I’m surprised that FW hasn’t done more in the last few months. No shows in May, one show on Saturday and then nothing announced after that. He should be really pushing at the moment to prove that they’re a proper competitor to Matchroom. In reality though whoever replaces Eddie on Sky (if there’s one main promoter) may be quickly number 2 and able to poach some of Tokyo olympics guys.