Devin Haney looks vulnerable in UD win over Jorge Linares

There were high expectations for WBC lightweight champion Devin Haney going into his bout with Jorge Linares, but he didn’t live up to them. 

Devin Haney has was a hot boxing prospect before he was the WBC lightweight champion, but people had questions about his ceiling. Against Jorge Linares on Saturday, May 29, Haney left spectators with more questions than answers.

Haney (26-0, 15 KOs) underperformed against Yuriorkis Gamboa in his previous outing. He headhunted instead of taking what Gamboa gave him. Haney won a wide unanimous decision, but it was a forgettable performance.

He appeared to learn from the Gamboa fight and boxed instead of searching for the sensational knockout. Haney was on his way to a complete fight against Linares, but flaws emerged.

Haney’s jab fired off in Linares’s face like a tripwire all night long. Linares pushed the action, but Haney was content with being the counterpuncher. His jab controlled the distance and bruised Linares’s eyes.

Haney didn’t let up with his jab. He stepped on the gas in round 6 and became the aggressor driving Linares to the ropes on multiple occasions. Linares started to break down under Haney’s pressure.

Devin Haney vs. Jorge Linares highlights and results

Linares (47-6, 29 KOs) looked faded in round 8 and ate a high number of Haney’s punches. Somehow, the 35-year-old Linares found a way to stay in the fight and carried on.

Haney looked like he was cruising to an easy victory. There were moments when it seemed like Linares couldn’t take much more, but one second changed the fight.

At the very end of round 10, Linares caught Haney on the jaw with a right hook. The bell rang, but Haney’s legs looked like rubber as he struggled to make it back to his corner. When round 11 started, his legs were still missing.

Haney was seriously hurt and continued to wobble. Linares landed more punches on Haney, but Haney held him every time he came in close. Halfway into the round, Haney recovered but absorbed another Linares right that staggered him again towards the end of the round.

Round 12 was all Linares. Haney was hurt but held onto Linares whenever he could and survived to the final bell.

The judges returned two scores of 116-112 and one of 115-113, all for Haney. Haney boxed well for 10 rounds, but one punch almost ended things. Linares is a talented boxer but well past his prime.

Haney was doing all the right things until that one moment in round 10. Instead of talking about a brilliant boxing exhibition by Haney, we’re questioning his chin and his legitimacy as a world champion. All the good things Haney did will be overshadowed by the one punch that turned his legs into spaghetti.