9/13 DAZN: Devin Haney vs Zaur Abdullaev

[patscorpio]

Lightweight sensation Devin Haney's world title elimination fight against Zaur Abdullaev will headline a card that will also include two world title bouts on Sept. 13 at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York, Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn announced on Tuesday.

The card (on DAZN) will also include unified junior featherweight word titleholder Daniel Roman facing mandatory challenger Murodjon Akhmadaliev and women's featherweight world titlist Heather Hardy defending her belt in an all-Brooklyn showdown against Amanda Serrano, who has won titles in seven divisions.

"It always feels good when I get the official date," Haney said. "I stay in the gym because I'm a dog and I love to fight. I want the world to see me rise to my competition. The better they are, the better I am. I'm fighting an undefeated fighter."

Haney (22-0, 14 KOs), 20, of Las Vegas, will be in the second fight of his contract with Matchroom Boxing and is coming off a brutal fifth-round knockout of Antonio Moran on May 25 in the leading knockout of the year candidate.

Hearn called the fight "a big chance for Devin to take NYC by storm."

"Abdullaev is a dangerous undefeated fighter, but Devin is ready for all comers," Hearn said. "It's crazy to believe he is just 20 years of age. I think it's fair to say he is the most exciting young fighter in the world right now."


Haney will be making his New York debut against Abdullaev in a fight whose winner will become the mandatory challenger for the winner of the Aug. 31 fight between unified world champion Vasiliy Lomachenko, the pound-for-pound king, and Luke Campbell.

"New York fans are some of the most loyal fans in sports, and I'm looking forward to really putting on a show for them," Haney said. "Abdullaev likes to apply pressure, and I expect nothing less on Sept. 13. I've seen him fight, and he's a hungry fighter. There's no doubt he is my toughest opponent to date. This fight is one step away from a world title fight, so we both have a lot on the line."

Abdullaev (11-0, 7 KOs), 25, of Russia, will be fighting outside of his home country for the first time and said he is eager for the battle.

"I'm delighted that the fight is happening," Abdullaev said. "I was panicking when I saw some posts from Haney on social media that nobody wants to fight him at 135 pounds and he might have to move up in weight. I kept biting my nails. Allah the gracious has delivered this fight, and now it's reality."

The fight was originally penciled in to take place in Las Vegas but was moved to New York.

"I am a bit disappointed that the fight won't be at Haney's Las Vegas backyard, as it would have been great to dethrone him in front of his home crowed, but New York is a great boxing city," Abdullaev said. "I'm not silly and I do understand that I'm coming as an underdog, but on Sept. 13, I'm coming to crash the hype against all odds."

Roman (27-2-1, 10 KOs), 29, of Los Angeles, will be making his fifth 122-pound title defense and fighting for the first since unifying two belts by majority decision in a hometown fight against TJ Doheny in a brawl on April 26.

Roman's camp talked about the possibility of vacating one of the belts and looking for a bigger name to face than Akhmadaliev, but ultimately Roman didn't want to relinquish a title.

"Anyone that knows me understands that I'm a real fighter," Roman said. "I'll fight anyone they put in front of me. Akhmadaliev is hungry, but so am I. It wasn't that long ago [2017] when I challenged for the WBA title, so we're not going to give it up. I'm here to fight and defend the WBA belt once more. I have two belts, but I want more. My goal is to get all of them so by no means am I overlooking Akhmadaliev. He has that amateur pedigree, can punch with power and likes to come forward. The second you underestimate someone, that's when bad things happen. I'll be ready for whatever he brings."

Akhmadaliev (6-0 5 KOs), 24, of Uzbekistan, was a decorated amateur and didn't need much pro seasoning to land a title shot.

"I am very glad that Daniel Roman took this fight," Akhmadaliev said. "I know that we are both warriors and this will be a real war."

Hearn commended Roman for deciding to keep the belt and agreeing to the fight.

"Danny refused to vacate the belt and like a true champion will face a young, fearless, hard-hitting mandatory challenger who is taking a giant leap after just six fights," Hearn said.

Hardy (22-0, 4 KOs), 37, won a vacant title by unanimous decision over Shelly Vincent in their rematch in October and will be making her first defense against Serrano, one of the biggest names in women's boxing.

Serrano (36-1-1, 27 KOs), 30, a former featherweight titlist, won a junior bantamweight title at the Hulu Theater on Jan. 18 via first-round knockout of Eva Voraberger. Serrano is the only woman to win titles in seven divisions and will return to featherweight to challenge Hardy for her old belt.

A Serrano win would likely propel her into a fight with undisputed women's lightweight champion Katie Taylor, but Hardy intends to wreck those plans.

"I didn't get this far in the boxing game to not know how it works," Hardy said. "They're hyping up a big fight between her and Katie Taylor, and this is the second of Amanda's three-fight deal [with Hearn]. It will be my first time competing as an underdog even as the current world champion, but I'm excited as hell. ... Trust me -- nobody scares me."

Said Serrano: "Heather is 22-0 for a reason. She always finds a way to win. We've sparred in the past, and I've never had an easy day with her. So many of the other champions vacated their belts to avoid fighting me but Heather is a true world champion who will not give up her belt. We know each other well, and I'm honored to fight her for her world title. It's nothing personal, just business for two girls from Brooklyn."

Also on the card, heavyweights Michael Hunter (17-1, 12 KOs), 31, a 2012 U.S. Olympian from Las Vegas, will face Sergey Kuzmin (15-0, 11 KOs), 32, of Russia for a regional title.

Hunter has won five fights in a row since losing a decision to Oleksandr Usyk in a 2017 cruiserweight world title fight and then moving up to heavyweight.

Kuzmin's biggest win was a knockout of Davis Price in September, and he also outpointed tough Joey Dawejko in March.

 

[THE MACHINE]

Looking forward to seeing Devin in action

 

[patscorpio]

this card on paper has the feel that every fight might be lit as hell

 

[patscorpio]

 

[Omar Little]

Devin's skillset

 

[Loose]

Man this kid is going to be special

 

[Rev Leon Lonnie Love]

He sacked Floyd Sr as his trainer after he put in all that work on him was promoting him on every video before he turned pro

 

[patscorpio]

fukk!!!

 

[reservoirdogs]

Hunter vs Kuzmin and the main are still interesting but FOR fukkS SAKE... 10 days before the fucing fight

 

[patscorpio]

 

[The axe murderer]

Hunter vs Kuzmin and the main are still interesting but FOR fukkS SAKE... 10 days before the fucing fight

damn solid card but thats a shame. Who you got Kuzmin or Hunter? Both solid

 

[reservoirdogs]

damn solid card but thats a shame. Who you got Kuzmin or Hunter? Both solid

Hunter
Kuzmin had problems with Dewajko...

 

[Conscious Pilot]

Is this really a WBC eliminator for the LW Title? I see Haney moving up to 140 before a potential Loma Bout at 130.

 

[patscorpio]

Daniel Roman Diagnosed With Tendinitis, Will Be Out 4-6 Weeks
By Jake Donovan

Published On Wed Sep 4, 2019, 07:37 AM EDT

The doctor’s report is back and Daniel Roman can rest easy.

So too, can Murujdon Akhmadaliev and his manager, Vadim Kornilov.

An injured left shoulder forced Roman (27-2-1, 10KOs) to withdraw from his upcoming mandatory title defense versus Murojdon (6-0, 5KOs). The bout was due to take place Sept. 13 at Hulu Theater in New York City, in chief support to a DAZN-headlining lightweight title eliminator between Devin Haney (22-0, 14KOs) and Russia’s Zaur Abdullaev (11-0, 7KOs).

The rest of the show will go on as planned. The good news for Los Angeles’ Roman is that his career should resume much sooner than initially expected.

“We got the results back and the good news he should only be out (of the ring) for 4-6 weeks,” Alex Camponovo, general manager of Thompson Boxing told BoxingScene.com on Tuesday. “We thought it was a tear, but it turned out to just be tendinitis.”

Roman suffered the injury during a sparring session on Aug. 17, which forced him to step back during training for what would be the fourth defense of his super bantamweight title. Efforts to rehabilitate the injury—including an acupuncture session—ultimately had an adverse effect, leaving him no choice but to postpone his upcoming title defense.

The news wasn’t exactly embraced by Murojdon’s team. Kornilov took to social media in casting his doubts over the severity of the issue, going as far as to suggest that Roman’s team has been trying to get out of the fight from the moment it was ordered by the World Boxing Association (WBA).

Uzbekistan’s Murojdon earned the mandatory ranking following a knockout win over Isaac Zarate last November. His title shot was due to come immediately thereafter, but the 2016 Olympic Bronze medalist—who now lives and trains in California—agreed to step aside to allow Roman to enter a title unification bout with TJ Doheny, scoring a thrilling 12-round unanimous decision this past April to extend his current 19-fight win streak.

Murojdon appeared on the undercard, knocking out Carlos Carlson in three rounds, with the two camps ordered to begin talks soon thereafter.

It eventually went to a purse bid hearing, with World of Boxing—Murojdon’s promoter—securing the rights as the lone bidder. An agreement was reached to place the bout on the Sept. 13 card, but is now in need of a new home once Roman is cleared to return to the ring.

The good news for all involved is there will in fact be a title fight to reschedule.

“The idea that we wanted to pull (Roman) from this fight to put him in another unification bout or any other fight… it’s not even worth mentioning,” noted Camponovo. “Danny Roman is always willing to take on all comers, as his track record proves.

“We are very much looking forward to this fight versus Murojdon Akhmadaliev. His team can rest assure and expect to be ready to fight for the title by November or December, once we can work out a new date.”

thats good..hopefully on a high profile...put it on femi vs ruiz 2 then if there are no november cards for it

 

[patscorpio]

why? unless this goes a long way to make the winner face lomachenko