Haney Says Norman Win Makes Him P4P, But Critics Disagree

Devin Haney says if he is victorious Saturday night in his fight against undefeated WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr., he will deserve to be ranked high on the pound-for-pound list.

Haney (32-0, 16 KO) said he was ranked P4P when he fought Ryan Garcia, but was removed after his loss. For the record, he is ranked No. 6 after defeating Vasiliy Lomachenko and Regis Prograis in straight fights.

Norman’s high record

The problem with Haney thinking a win over Norman Jr. (28-0, 22 KO) will put him in the P4P top 10 is that he’s not ranked in it. Furthermore, Norman Jr. did not defeat any notable opposition during his career, yet he was promoted to the WBO welterweight title.

Haney did not say who should replace him on the list to earn a top ten spot. The way he looked in his fights against Jose Ramirez, Ryan Garcia and Vasiliy Lomachenko Not a pound-for-pound material, right?

The Ring Magazine, Pound for Pound (P4P) Top 10

1. Terence Crawford
2. Oleksandr Usyk
3. Naoya Inoue
4. Dmitry Bivol
5. Artur Beterbiev
6. Jesse Rodriguez
7. Junto Nakatani
8. Shakur Stevenson
9. David Benavidez
10. Canelo Alvarez

Fans will laugh at Devin if he says he deserves to be rated higher by fans than Canelo, Benavidez, Shakur, Nakatani, “Bam” Rodriguez, Beterbiev, Bivol, Inoue, or Usyk. It would make Ring magazine look bad if they gave him a high ranking.

P4P politics in play

Fans are already criticizing their rankings as political for ranking Crawford higher than Usyk at No. 1 on the P4P list. But bouncing one of the top 10 off the list to include Haney would be just as bad.

With Al Rayyan [Garcia] I’ve been taken off the pound-for-pound list, or at least some people’s list. Devin Haney told Ring Magazine he believes that by beating WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr. on Saturday, it will be worth adding him to his pound-for-pound list. But I think this is a fight that will put me back on that list, at the top of that list.

What Hani should actually do

For Haney to be added to the P4P roster, he will need to do more than just beat Norman Jr. This would be a good start for him, but he will need to put together some strong performances in a row. He didn’t do that.

Key gains that Hani needs to consider P4P

1. Brian Norman Jr
2. Jaron Ennis
3. Gary Antoine Russell
4. Teofimo Lopez

In Haney’s last four fights, he has had three lackluster performances He had to suffer two defeats. A 2-2 record in his last four fights is not worth P4P.

• Jose Ramirez: Win – 12-round unanimous decision
• Ryan Garcia: Loss – 12-round majority decision
• Regis Prograis: Win – 12 round unanimous decision
• Vasiliy Lomachenko: Win – (controversial) 12-round unanimous decision

“It will show the type of fighter I am. I’m fighting the best 147-year-old guy in my first fight. I haven’t made any adjustments and I’m not looking for the easiest guy to win a world title,” Haney said. “I went and faced the best man. This is just a pound-for-pound fighter. This is a pound-for-pound champion.”