LAS VEGAS (AP) — Undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney retained his titles by winning a controversial unanimous decision over former three-division champion Vasiliy Lomachenko on Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden.
Lomachenko dominated the latter rounds and outpunched Haney, 124-110.
But much to the dismay of the 14,436 fans in attendance, all three judges had Haney winning. Tim Cheatham and David Sutherland scored the fight 115-113, while Dave Moretti had it 116-112
“Lomachenko is a future Hall of Famer,” Haney said. “It was a blessing. He was my toughest opponent. He was very crafty. He turns it up in the championship rounds. (This fight) put me in the history books forever.”
Haney improved to 30-0. Lomachenko, 35, dropped to 17-3.
Now Haney has a decision to make, as he will be a free agent when he wakes up Sunday morning, as his three-fight deal with Top Rank and Lou DiBella is now expired.
The 24-year-old has plenty of options, as he could stay at 135 pounds for one final fight, where a highly anticipated match awaits against fellow pound-for-pound contender Shakur Stevenson, who was in attendance Saturday.
Stevenson disagreed with the result.
“Lomachenko should be undisputed champion — he won that fight,” Stevenson said.
But if Haney is ready to step in the ring with another undefeated fighter, Stevenson said, “Let’s make it happen. I can’t wait.”
Haney could also move to junior welterweight, where he would pursue a second-division title while positioning himself to meet the winner of the June 10 fight between Josh Taylor and Teofimo Lopez Jr.
The wild-card bout out there would be against Gervonta Davis, who looked impressive in his win over Ryan Garcia on April 22.
On the undercard:
Oscar Valdez manhandled Adam Lopez in the final preliminary bout, including a dominating 10th round. Valdez (31-1, 23 KOs) beat Lopez (16-5) by unanimous decision.
Raymond Muratalla pummeled Jeremia Nakathila early and the fight was stopped at the 2:48 mark of the second round. Muratella improved to 18-0 and 15 KOs. Nakathila dropped to 23-3
Junto Nakatani improved to 25-0 with his 19th KO, droppin Andrew Moloney with a devastating left to the face in the 12th round. Moloney, who fell to 25-3, was taken to University Medical Center for evaluation.
Nico Ali Walsh (8-0-1) and Danny Rosenberger (13-9-5) fought to a draw, each scoring 77-75 on two of the judges’ cards, while the third finished at 76-all.
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