Devin Haney goes up against Regis Prograis on Saturday, December 9 at Chase Center in San Francisco. Battling it out in front of his hometown crowd, former undisputed lightweight champion moves up in weight and looks to claim the WBC 140-pound belt against current champion of New Orleans.
The pair squares off in the highly anticipated world championship bout, scheduled for 12 rounds. The event airs live on DAZN.
At the launch press conference in San Francisco, the fighters previewed their bout and went face to face. Both expressed confidence in victory.
‘I’m far above him’
Bay Area undefeated Devin Haney (30-0, 15 KOs) is coming off the win by unanimous decision against Vasiliy Lomachenko in May. With the victory, the 24-year-old made the second successful defense of his undisputed 135-pound title.
“I’m going to beat the s*** out of him,” said Devin Haney. “I’m thankful to be in this position and it’s a dream come true. This is a huge fight for boxing and it’s a big opportunity for me because I have always dreamed of becoming a two-weight division World champion. I’m happy that I can hold on to my titles but also happy that I can challenge Regis, who is the best at 140. But I will show that I’m on a different level and that I am the best. I’m excited for it, and I think the fight is going to fireworks. I’m far above him.”
“If you look at the receipts, I called you [Regis Prograis] out before the [Danielito Zorilla] fight. This was the fight I always wanted at 140 if I couldn’t get one of the massive fights at 135 and so Regis Prograis was the guy who was next in line. Whether he was to look good or not, it didn’t matter to me. It’s the first fight at Chase Center and the fight big fight here in the Bay Area for some time. I’m just happy to be that guy because I always said I was going to come back here and bring big time boxing back here.”
‘I feel like I’m going to stop him’
Two-time super lightweight champion Regis Prograis (29-1, 24 KOs) was in action in June, when he defeated Danielito Zorrilla by split decision and retained his WBC 140-pound title. NOLA’s 34-year-old southpaw makes the second defense of his belt.
“We can go back-and-forth but I don’t try to get underneath anyone’s skin,” said Regis Prograis. “That’s not what I do. Maybe he doesn’t get the respect he deserves. He could have had it the easy way and I heard that they bought their losses away. I heard that from a bunch of people. But that s*** don’t matter for me. For me, I’m going to fight him, and I don’t care what you got. It’s about me and you now. I look at who he is now because that’s who I’m fighting. I don’t care about all his past s***. I care about fighting him now and that’s what I’m looking forward to. I believe I have the power to take anyone out.”
“I don’t want to say too much but I think he’s going to be surprised at my skill. I’ve been working my ass off. I’ve been in LA training and sparring and in Texas doing the same s*** for a long time. It’s not going to be no ‘skill versus power’ it’s going to be ‘skill versus skill and then I still have power too. I want to show people in this fight my skill. Thank you Zorilla if he’s watching this. If I would have blasted Zorilla out in two rounds, then I don’t think he [Haney] would have fought me. I really don’t. I had an off night. But it happened and we’re here now, so let’s go on December 9. I’m going to keep my belt. I’m not giving it up and I’m going to keep it, for sure. I feel like I’m going to stop him.”
In the UK and Australia, Prograis vs Haney airs on Sunday, December 10.
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