Devin Haney is campaigning for the vacant Ring Magazine welterweight championship following his victory against WBO titleholder Brian Norman Jr. His father, Bill Haney, is using the title pursuit to secure a lucrative rematch against Ryan Garcia.
Although Haney holds the number one ranking at 147 pounds with The Ring, official publication policy dictates he must face another top contender to earn the vacant championship. A potential bout against Jack Catterall has emerged as an option, while proposals for a catchweight contest at 144 pounds against Shakur Stevenson were dismissed. Speaking on Mr. Verzace’s podcast, Bill Haney questioned why his son had not already been awarded the title following his recent championship win. He stated: “Why isn’t Devin ‘Debo’ Haney the Ring champion as well as the WBO champion, being that we done put in all the hard work? That’s the first question. And the second question is, who’s stopping and what’s stopping me from going out of here, taking it out right now and giving it to the champion that we believe and the people believe is the real Ring champion?”
The championship has remained vacant since former holder Jaron Ennis departed the welterweight division.
Beyond the physical belt, the public campaign represents a targeted effort to align with Turki Alalshikh, who controls The Ring and finances boxing’s largest fight cards. Publicly endorsing the Saudi-owned championship allows the Haney team to remain central to major scheduling discussions while seeking access to premier funding. Challenging decision-makers to set up division-defining bouts, Bill Haney asked: “Are you going to encourage Ryan Garcia and Conor Benn to fight Devin Haney? Or are we going to just hand him the Ring belt in unprecedented fashion?” He explicitly recognized the authority of those “paying the bills” in controlling fight momentum and purse allocations. While Conor Benn remains a potential alternative opponent, securing a second bout with Garcia remains the primary objective. Earning The Ring belt would solidify Haney’s standing at 147 pounds, providing significant leverage when negotiating future main-event contracts on the global stage.
