Top Rank Wins Purse Bid For Haney Vs. Martin: A Cinderella Story In Reverse?

Top Rank has won today’s purse bid to stage the Devin Haney vs. Sandor Martin WBC 140-lb title fight with a winning bid of $2,420,000.

Haney Unhappy with Low Bid

Haney (31-1, 15 KOs) didn’t seem happy about the news of the low offer from promoter Bob Arum’s Top Rank company, saying he should have bet him put his own bid in.

The fight will be shown on ESPN, and it’s unclear whether it’ll be on PPV. Unfortunately, Haney vs. Martin isn’t a PPV-worthy fight, and it could bomb for Top Rank if they try and peddle it to the public.

It’s obviously a tremendous pay cut for WBC champion Haney compared to what he enjoyed in his last fight against the superstar Ryan Garcia.

Haney is like Cinderella returning from the ball, reduced to rags once again from where he was before Ryan waved his magic wand to bless him with a massive pay with his 12 million Instagram followers and huge popularity.

That’s where Haney was before Ryan gave him the opportunity. His previous PPV clash against Regis Prograis was a disaster last December, bringing in only 60,000 buys.

Haney now needs to decide whether to vacate his WBC title or take the fight with Sandor Martin (42-3, 15 KOs). He might lose if he chooses to fight Martin, and his career would be in the dumps.

Potential Alternatives for Haney

Haney could also offer Sandor a step aside, but I don’t think he’ll agree to it because he already got bypassed for Devin’s recent fight against Ryan Garcia. It’s better that Sandor fight Haney now rather than step aside and watch him get beaten by someone.

It would be a better idea for Haney to use his WBC title while he still holds it to be installed as the mandatory for WBC 147-lb  champion Mario Barrios.

That’s a fight that Haney might sell, and it’s a winnable one for him. Barrios can’t punch, and Gervonta Davis and Keith Thurman already beat him.

If Haney loses to Barrios, it’s not as bad as it would if Sandor beats him because he would have an excuse to give to the public, blaming the loss on him moving up to 147.

I should’ve bid myself.. 😒 https://t.co/UdAYWJyhYk

— Devin Haney (@Realdevinhaney) June 18, 2024