Former undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney has named the best active fighter on the planet in his opinion.
The unbeaten 26-year-old from San Francisco is set to make his return to action this month when he steps up to welterweight to challenge WBO world champion Brian Norman Jr on November 22 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Haney’s last ring appearance came back in May when he defeated former unified super-lightweight champion Jose Ramirez at Times Square in New York City, although ‘The Dream’ received heavy criticism for what was an underwhelming performance.
The 26-year-old has an opportunity to redeem himself against Norman however as he sets his sights on becoming a three-weight world champion and handing his countryman the first defeat of his professional career.
In a feature with DAZN Boxing, Haney revealed the five fighters that make up his current pound-for-pound list, naming none other than three-weight undisputed world champion Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford at number 1.
“1. Terence Crawford. 2. Oleksandr Usyk. 3. Naoya Inoue. 4. Dmitry Bivol. 5. Bam Rodriguez.”
Crawford secured his place in boxing folklore in September when he defeated Mexican icon Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez to capture the undisputed super-middleweight championship in what was his first outing at 168lbs.
The 38-year-old from Omaha became the first male fighter to win an undisputed championship in three separate divisions, a feat that he has accomplished at super-lightweight and welterweight during his career to date.
As he prepares to consider his next move, ‘Bud’ could decide to drop down to middleweight ahead of his next ring appearance, with reports suggesting that he could be in line to face unified champion Janibek Alimkhanuly next year in a bid to become a six-weight world champion.
