Devin Haney dominance over Regis Prograis highlighted by unwanted punch record
Devin Haney claimed the latest unanimous decision win of his career over Regis Prograis, but they scorecards only tell half of the story
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Devin Haney broke a new punching record in his unanimous decision win over Regis Prograis in San Francisco on Saturday. The American boxer put in a dominant display against his fellow countryman en route to securing the WBC light-welterweight title.
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Haney's win has cemented his place as one of boxing's most impressive fighters in recent years given his string of wins. The 25-year-old boasts an incredible undefeated record in 31 professional bouts, claiming 15 TKOs along the way.
His latest opponent was also in strong form with 29 career wins and just two defeats to his name. However, the pair's tie proved that only one fighter was deserving of the WBC light-welterweight crown.
The fight saw Haney, making his first fight at 140 pounds, start strongly and continue to impress in all twelve rounds. The former undisputed lightweight champion out-punched Progaris in every round in a dominant display to claim the win via scorecards all showing 120-107 across the board.
In a further show of Haney's dominance, stat site CompuBox - which has been operating for 38 years - revealed that Haney landed 129 punches from 367 thrown. A stark contrast to Prograis' 36 punches hitting the target from 363 attempts.
Adding further salt into the wound, Prograis broke CompuBox's record of the lowest connected shots in a men's championship fight. The previous record was held by Edwin De Los Santos who landed just 40 punches against Shakur Stevenson last month.
Reacting to his defeat, Prograis admitted that he was outclassed on the night. "That motherf*****'s good, he's better than I thought he was," he said. "I just couldn't get to him. I thought he was a soft puncher, he does have power. I was down and I was like, 'What the f*** happened?'"
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Haney revealed after the victory that he had a game plan to defeat his opponent which clearly paid off. "I went in here and I hit him with a sharp right hand. I capitalized on his tendency of leaning in," he said.
"I wanted to go in there and I know I was getting him hurt," he went on to add. "My dad said stay focused, stick to the game plan."
The 25-year-old was then asked where the win could take his career next. "We got a lot of options, we talked about going to 147," Haney said. "We're gonna talk to the team and see what's next. I felt so much stronger in this camp, I felt great. 140, you got a new king."
Haney's performance was also praised by his peers, including former WBC interim lightweight title holder Ryan Garcia. "Haney is Good no doubt but I know him all to well and I will beat him. Good stuff tonight congrats but this year we are going to run it!!!" he said.
The sentiment was echoed by former undisputed super lightweight champion Josh Taylor. "Well done Devin Haney. Complete shut out. What a Performace [hats] off.
Taylor backed up his point in a further post where he sent a challenge to Haney: "Huge congratulations. What a great performance. I’ll fight you champ! I’ll give you the fight of your life! Catch weight on your way to 147"
