A solid team can help a fighter grow and succeed. Oftentimes, family is involved during this process, and some of the decisions that have to be made can make or break a fighter.
For Devin Haney, nothing is as strong as family.
The undisputed lightweight champion, Haney has been cornered throughout his career by his father, Bill. Their bond, in and out of the ring, has helped the 24-year-old become the dominant fighter he is today.
“My pops is everything,” Haney said on The Pivot Podcast. “He’s my best friend, he’s my father, he really plays all the roles. And he does whatever role he needs to play. At the end of the day, there has to be a balance of when to be a dad and when business is business. We know how to separate the two. I’m not going to say it’s been all butterflies in rainbows. We bump heads as partners, but we get over it.”
MORE: Sign up to watch Devin Haney vs. Vasiliy Lomachenko on ESPN+
The duo will be there for one another when Haney defends his status as the undisputed lightweight champion against Vasiliy Lomachenko on May 20. In Las Vegas. They are ready to take things to another level.
While separated from his mom, Bill became a big part of his son's life through boxing. Devin started boxing at seven, initially as a way for Bill to keep his son in line. While he wanted to teach Devin a lesson, Bill quickly realized that his son was a natural.
"When I got him in the car, I said, 'You know what, Dev? You think you know how to fight, huh?'" Bill told Bleacher Report. "So I said, 'I'm going to take you to the boxing gym where there's some other kids who really know how to fight. And we're going to see what you do then.' And he said, 'OK.' No fear. He said, 'OK.' So I took him. I was hoping he was going to get his butt kicked for real.
"The trainer [former light heavyweight contender Derrick Harmon] told me, 'Your son is a natural. He was pretty good on the football field, but no one had ever said Devin was a natural. That was the first time I'd heard him described like that. After that, we just got to working. I got behind him to turn fighting from a negative into a positive.”
MORE: Breaking down Devin Haney's pro boxing career
Devin decided to forgo a run in the Olympics to turn pro, and the two traveled to Mexico to turn professional when “The Dream” was 17. Haney got noticed and competed on ShoBox: The New Generation before being signed by Matchroom Boxing and, eventually, Top Rank.
After becoming WBC lightweight champion, Devin challenged George Kambosos Jr. in the latter’s home country of Australia for the chance to become undisputed. Bill initially wasn't approved for a travel visa due to a 1992 drug conviction for which he served time in prison. But just days before the fight, Haney was granted permission to enter the country.
While fighting without his father would have been unfamiliar to Devin, Bill was always confident that his son would emerge victorious.
“Devin is the kind of race car that any one of them (trainers) can drive at this point in time,” Bill Haney said on The DAZN Boxing Show via Boxing Scene. “I take a mad traditional approach, and I let a village, or a fraternity full of hall-of-fame coaches, teach us the game.”
Bill and Devin Haney have become a dominant duo in boxing. With their calm nature and unique training methods, they expect to remain unbeaten for years to come.
