Checkmate or Royal Flush? Devin “The Dream” Haney vs Vasiliy Lomachenko guaranteed to be a chess match

WBC Special Preview: #HaneyLoma

By James Blears

Devin “The Dream” Haney (29-0, 15 KO´s) stakes all four of his belts as undisputed lightweight champion, against former three division king Vasiliy “Loma” Lomachenko (17-2, 11 KO`s) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Saturday May 20th in a battle of Genius, being dubbed “Checkmate.”

The promotion poster depicts the two of them standing atop a chessboard with golden and white pieces, some of which are upright while others are strewn around. The obvious inference leans towards the strategy and guile plus smart moves, which are so much a part and parcel of both their styles. But surely with the natural advantages learning towards the younger, physically bigger man, the old warrior will also be employing the boldness of a poker player, to thrill a full house, aiming to land his punches flush. Loma`s countryman, the great “Dr Ironfist” Vitali Klitschko once forward the Fool`s Mate theory, by laconically commenting:

“In chess nobody is an expert, but everyone plays. In boxing, everybody is an expert, but no one plays!” It`s said that poker is one hundred percent skill and fifty percent luck. But R.E Shay argues that this theory doesn`t have a leg to stand on, explaining: “Depend upon the rabbit`s foot if you will. But remember it didn`t work for the rabbit!

If this match up lives up to and realizes its potential, with their combined but simultaneously conflicting superlative skills sets melding, blending but also clashing, we are in for an absolute classic. Top Rank Mogul Bob Arum, the co-promoter along with DiBella Entertainment and Devin Haney Promotions, who has seen it all over the decades, isn’t given to gushing hyperbole, but for this one, he`s enthusing about the enticing possibilities saying:

“It stirs my blood because it`s such an interesting fight to watch. It has all the elements of the great fights of the past. These are two fighters who have all the skills and determination to make this a great battle. I`m looking forward to one of the historic fights in the sport of boxing.”

Of course, it could have happened some time ago. In 2019 Devin won the WBC Interim title and challenged Loma who was then WBC, WBA and WBO Champion. He´d just added the Green and Gold Belt after beating Luke Campbell with a UD in London.

But Loma´s Team led by Manager Egis Kilmas politely declined, saying at that point, the youngster didn´t bring enough to be table. Disappointed but unabashed, The Kid audaciously warned Loma that they would inevitably meet in the ring and the longer it went, the harder it would get for the Ukrainian southpaw star, ageing faster than him. Loma was then elevated to Franchise Champion, Devin became full champion, successfully defended with a UD over Alfredo Santiago, but then needed shoulder surgery.

Loma`s next fight was an enigma against IBF champion Teofimo Lopez and he lost it by UD. Lopez out-landed him in eight of the twelve rounds. Loma had made a slow start and didn`t really settle into the grove until the eighth. By then it was too late to make up all of the lost ground. Was Teo`s previous two round destruction of Richard Comey to win IBF laurels affecting Loma`s psyche, making him overly cautious?

Since then Loma has been on the three fights comeback trail, including a UD victory over Comey who he knocked down in the seventh. This has kept his hand in for the supreme test which is Devin Haney. Aged thirty five Vasiliy is eleven years old than Devin, who has an almost five inches reach advantage over him.

Loma is the smaller man, having won world championships at featherweight and super-featherweight before stretching up to lightweight. Whereas Devin is a natural lightweight. Big for the category, the current question is just how much longer before he outgrows it and moves up, and is he having uncomfortable problems in reaching that limit now?

Both respect the ability of the other. Devin says: “He didn`t give me a shot when I challenged him in 2019, but I`m not going to be petty. Lomachenko has an extremely high boxing IQ. But, I will show the World on May 20th that I`m the best fighter on the planet. I`m ready to defend my undisputed title in devastating fashion. He`s a good fighter, but I`m on a totally different level. On fight night, the world will see that!”

Loma has not had an easy time of it as late. He took eleven months out, to serve in a Territorial Defense Battalion in his homeland of Ukraine, because of the Russian Invasion. Now he`s back in the US, focused on boxing and training for the most important fight of his career.

His amateur career is legendary. Three hundred and ninety six bouts, just one defeat which he avenged twice and two Olympic Gold Medals. He turned pro relatively later in 2013 and has fast tracked to success. His only losses were early on to Orlando Salido and then to Lopez. Loma has said of this upcoming fight: “This is my second chance and I will try my best. Thank you to Team Haney for this opportunity. I respect his Boxing IQ and I`m excited for this challenge. We`re well prepared. I believe in God and my Team.”

Devin went down under to emerge surfing on the crest of the wave, adding three more belts to his Green and Gold. He defeated George Kambosos Jr and then repeated the feat, again in Australia. A supreme achievement.

The only almost hiccup so far, was his fight against wily veteran Jorge Linares. Devin dominated and was convincing, but then…at the end of the tenth, by George he got nailed with a right left combo, which wobbled him. Fortunately the bell rang and Jorge sardonically ushered the rattled Devin back to the corner, matador style. For the next two rounds leading to the final bell, Devin got on his bike, staying out of trouble, which irritated the fans, who wanted to see a slugfest, but he won a UD. When they fought, Loma TKO`d Jorge Linares in the tenth at Madison Square Garden, but that was some time ago in 2018.

Devin stresses that at twenty four, he`s just getting started, while at thirty five Vasiliy is closer to the end. It will require an all- time great performance with Loma needing to utilize all the zip possible in those legs first made nimble in childhood dancing classes at the insistence of his dad Anatoly, to muster up a sharp as mustard performance. Blinding speed and lightning coordination as well as reflexes is key, as Devin insists that he and he alone, holds the keys to the lightweight division.

To win, Loma will have to turn the hands of the clock back. Old card players don`t depart, they just shuffle away. A winning hand must contain four aces! He`ll also have to take calculated risks against younger Devin. In the words of Nobel Laureate William Faulkner: “You cannot swim for new horizons until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.”

This will be Devin`s most complicated and compelling fight thus far. To prove he`s a superstar he must win and win in style. Nothing less will suffice.

If these two perform to their prodigious capabilities, we will have a viable candidate for Fight of the Year, Fight of the Decade, and who knows if it will qualify for the Century echelon?

Tale of the Tape

DEVIN HANEY (US) Undisputed Lightweight Champion DATE OF BIRTH: NOVEMBRE 17, 1998 BIRTHPLACE SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA RESIDENCE: LAS VEGAS, NEVADA AGE: 24 NICK NAME: THE DREAM RECORD: 29-0-0, 15 ko’s %KO’S: 51.8 % GUARD: ORTHODOX TOTAL ROUNDS: 186 WORLD TITLE FIGHTS: 7 (7-0-0) TRAINER: BILL HANEY MANAGER: BILL HANEY PROMOTER: TOP RANK

VASILIY LOMACHENKO (UKRAINE) CHALLENGER / WBC no. 1 DATE OF BIRTH: FEBRUARY 17, 1988 BIRTHPLACE: BILHOROD-DNISTROVSKYI, UKRA RESIDENCE: OXNARD, CALIFORNIA, USA AGE: 35 NICK NAME: LOMA RECORD: 17-2-0, 11 ko’s %KO’S: 57.9 % GUARD: SOUTHPAW TOTAL ROUNDS: 176 WORLD TITLE FIGHTS: 15 (13-2-0) TRAINER: ANATOLY LOMACHENKO MANAGER: EGIS KLIMAS PROMOTER: TOP RANK

WBC Top Ten Lightweight Champions

1. FLOYD MAYWEATHER (US)

2. JULIO CESAR CHAVEZ (MEXICO)

3. ROBERTO DURAN (PANAMA)

4. CARLOS ORTIZ (P. RICO)

5. PERNELL WHITAKER (US)

6. ALEXIS ARGUELLO (NICARAGUA)

7. HECTOR CAMACHO (P. RICO)

8. ISMAEL LAGUNA (PANAMA)

9. ESTEBAN DE JESUS (P. RICO)

10. EDWIN ROSARIO (P. RICO)

General Info on the Lightweight Division

42 WORLD CHAMPIONS RECOGNIZED BY THE WBC OF WHICH 7 HAVE REGAINED THE TITLE: CARLOS ORTIZ (P. RICO), ISMAEL LAGUNA (PANAMA), MANDO RAMOS (US), JOSE LUIS RAMIREZ (MEXICO), STEVE JOHNSTON (US), JOSE LUIS CASTILLO (MEXICO), ANTONIO DeMARCO (MEXICO)

180 WORLD TITLE BOUTS HAVE BEEN HELD IN THE HISTORY OF THE WBC IN 15 COUNTRIES

THIS WILL BE THE 96th FIGHT IN THE LIGHTWEIGHT DIVISION HELD IN UNITED STATES IN THE WBC HISTORY.

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