Key points:
- Top Rank won the purse bid for Devin Haney’s WBO welterweight title defence against Keyshawn Davis with an $8.55 million offer
- Teofimo Lopez’s Takeover Promotions was the only other bidder, offering $2.35 million
- Haney receives 75% ($6.41m) as champion, Davis receives 25% ($2.14m) as mandatory challenger
- Top Rank has proposed October 3, with Barclays Center, State Farm Arena, and Michelob Ultra Arena under consideration
Top Rank secured the promotional rights to Devin Haney’s WBO welterweight title defence against Keyshawn Davis on Thursday, submitting a winning purse bid of $8.55 million at the sanctioning body’s headquarters in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The only other bidder was Teofimo Lopez’s Takeover Promotions, which offered $2.35 million, a surprising entry given Lopez’s long-running rivalry with Haney. Under WBO rules, Haney (33-0, 15 KOs) collects 75 percent of the winning bid as champion, a $6.41 million payday, while Davis (15-0, 10 KOs) receives the remaining 25 percent, worth $2.14 million as mandatory challenger. Top Rank’s bid letter proposed October 3 as the date, with Barclays Center in Brooklyn, State Farm Arena in Atlanta, and Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas all under consideration as venues.
The bidding followed days of public sniping between the camps. “Keyshawn Davis has gone missing with millions on the table for his team and family,” Bill Haney posted on X before the hearing. Davis fired back during an Instagram Live session, insisting he’d been negotiating directly with Top Rank rather than Haney’s side. “Y’all really thought I was hiding? I’mma break all this down. I thought these dudes was the champions. It look like these dudes chasing after me,” Davis said. “Why the hell would I get you on the phone and try to negotiate anything with you, Bill?”
WBO executive Gustavo Olivieri confirmed the fight must take place within 90 days of Thursday’s bid, giving both sides until early November to finalise a deal, with 48 hours from the ruling for written confirmation that both intend to proceed.