Bill Haney, the father of Devin Haney, posted a rambling video on social media, gushing about YoutTuber turned boxer Jake Paul’s hustle, bringing in money, and becoming what he feels is the new “face of Boxing.”
The gushing praise Bill gave to Jake seemed to hint at a new direction for Devin Haney, whose career is uncertain after his loss to Ryan Garcia on April 20th. Ryan wiped out Haney in a way that makes it difficult to see him returning to accomplish anything at 140 or 147.
Assuming Haney does begin hustling fights against retired MMA fighters and old ex-world champion boxers, these would be appealing options:
Conor McGregor
Oscar De La Hoya
Fernando Vargas
Miguel Cotto
Kostya Tszyu
Bernard Hopkins
If Bill and Devin are going to select fights in the way Jake has been doing, selecting old MMA guys and retired 58-year-old Mike Tyson, they could make money doing that. If they select older retired fighters and then peddle the fights on PPV, it might be profitable.
Haney’s alternatives are bleak. Besides a rematch with Ryan, which now seems unlikely, there aren’t any notable fighters for Haney that he can fight PPV that will sell. If Devin is going to keep fighting active boxers, these are his best options to make money:
– Gervonta Davis: Very unlikely to happen
– Teofimo Lopez
– Jaron Ennis
– Shakur Stevenson
– Conor Benn
– Terence Crawford
I can’t see Haney beating any of those fighters, not even Benn. His punch resistance is too weak, and he can’t punch. Those would likely end badly for Haney, and then he really would need to go the YouTuber circus route to reinvent himself.
“Why don’t they say the truth? The Face of Boxing is Jake Paul,” said Bill Haney on social media, praising YouTuber Jake Paul. “I say the heartbeat of it is Devin Haney, and being 25 and the most accomplished.”
“If it’s about gates, popularity, and bringing new eyes to the sport. Did I say something wrong when I said Jake Paul is the Face and Devin is the heartbeat? We know that when you’re talking about legacy because clearly, you people aren’t thinking about legacy.
“Legacy isn’t reigning supreme because that would be the youngest and most accomplished fighter. Truly if it’s about bringing eyes to the sport and taking the sport to a new level, then we got to give it to the social media stars that are doing it right now.
“That kid is raking in that cake, boy,” said Bill when told that Jake’s net worth is around $30 million. “For Jake to be out, challenging the face of boxing and how you can move and what you can do. Hey, we’re ushering in good times.”
