Key points:
- Devin Haney publicly named the IBF title as the belt he wants next, a clear signal toward IBF champion Liam Paro
- This follows Keyshawn Davis withdrawing from negotiations for their previously planned October 3 title fight
- Paro responded with a matching message, and had earlier accused Haney’s side of going quiet on negotiations
- Jack Catterall claims Haney used him as leverage to pressure Paro into accepting less money
Devin Haney’s hunt for a welterweight unification opponent has taken another turn, with the WBO champion publicly signalling interest in IBF titleholder Liam Paro just days after Keyshawn Davis walked away from their planned October fight.
“Have the WBO.. I want the IBF,” Haney posted on X, responding to a message from WBO president Gustavo Olivieri showing the two organisations’ logos side by side. Paro answered almost immediately with a mirrored message of his own: “Have the IBF.. I want the WBO.” The exchange came after Paro had publicly complained about going quiet on Haney’s side. “I’ve said I’m good to fight by the end of October, and we ain’t heard a thing,” Paro told Fox Sports Australia, denying reports that his financial demands were what stalled talks.
The road to this point has been unusually messy. Haney’s team had been in advanced negotiations with Jack Catterall for an October 3 date before those talks reportedly gave way to the Paro pursuit, and Catterall isn’t taking the shift quietly. He believes he was never a real target in the first place.
“Catterall believes Haney never intended to fight him, claiming the discussions were a tactic to pressure Liam Paro into taking less money for a welterweight unification,” according to Boxing247. Catterall now plans to pursue whoever wins the Romero-Lopez fight on August 22 instead.
Paro (28-1, 16 KOs) won the IBF title from Lewis Crocker in June and has yet to make a defence. Nothing is finalised between him and Haney, but the public exchange leaves little doubt about where both men’s interest currently sits.