Why was Devin Haney fined in his last boxing clash against Vasiliy Lomachenko that culminated in a unanimous decision victory?
Devin Haney's long-awaited grudge match against Vasiliy Lomachenko finally came to fruition in the 2023 calendar year. The biggest talking points to emerge from the bout were its controversial scoring and the fine imposed on Haney.
The American pugilist clashed with Ukraine's Lomachenko in a main event matchup that headlined a boxing event at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, on May 20, 2023.
The fight had Haney's undisputed lightweight championship status at stake -- as he'd put his WBA (Super), WBC, WBO, IBF, and The Ring lightweight titles on the line against Lomachenko. In a closely-contested matchup that went the 12-round distance, Haney successfully defended his titles via unanimous decision (116-112, 115-113, 115-113).
However, the judges' scoring was criticized by many combat sports fans and experts alike. In the ensuing months, the consensus has been that Lomachenko outworked Haney in the match and was more deserving of the judges' nod.
Besides, Haney later took to X (formerly known as Twitter) and tweeted that he'd been fined $400,000 of his fight purse from his matchup against Lomachenko for a shove.
The fine levied against Devin Haney was owing to his pre-fight shove of Vasiliy Lomachenko. The heated buildup to the matchup between the two rivals seemingly reached a crescendo during their face-off at the weigh-ins. Haney appeared to lose his temper and shoved 'Loma' during the weigh-in face-off.
During a pre-fight face-off in the UFC MMA organization, Drakkar Klose notably suffered a concussion and whiplash owing to a shove by Jeremy Stephens. With such incidents being taken into consideration, athletic commissions around the world have lately adopted a stricter stance against pre-fight shoves and other such acts.
After the Haney-Lomachenko fight, Haney was fined $400,000 by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) for shoving Lomachenko. However, by the next month (June 2023), the NSAC reduced the fine.
As reported by Michael Benson of talkSPORT, the NSAC initially withheld Haney $400,000, which was 10 percent of his fight purse. However, Haney subsequently received a partial pardon, and the fine was reduced to $25,000. Benson added that the $375,000 sum would be returned to Haney.
Devin Haney vs. Vasiliy Lomachenko: What's next for the two boxing stars?
Devin Haney recently announced that he's vacating his lightweight titles. Haney's stepping down as the undisputed lightweight champion comes as he's set to move up in weight and fight Regis Prograis for the latter's WBC super lightweight (junior welterweight) title. The Haney-Prograis matchup will transpire in San Francisco, California, on December 9, 2023.
Meanwhile, former three-division world champion Vasiliy Lomachenko and his team had been lobbying for a rematch against Devin Haney. Earlier this year, Lomachenko's promoter, Top Rank's Bob Arum, opined that the Ukrainian fighter would return in 2024. However, 'Loma's' next opponent hasn't been officially announced yet.