Shakur Stevenson and Jorge Linares have blasted the unanimous decision awarded to Devin Haney in his win over Vasiliy Lomachenko “a steal” and agreed that the Ukrainian was robbed.
“Lomachenko won,” the American boxer said in an interview with Fight Hype. “I had it 8 rounds to 4 in favor of Lomachenko.”
Asked if he thinks the fight was close or a steal, Stevenson was blunt in his response.
“No, I think it was a robbery, because Lomachenko won” he added, “I don’t even think it was competitive.”
One of the judges saw Devin Haney win 116-112 while the other two saw Haney win 115-113, to give him the unanimous decision victory.
Shakur slams Devin Haney for fleeing the ring at the end of the fight
Stevenson also criticized Haney for fleeing the ring at the end of the fight. Haney had left the ring to a loud boo as soon as he got out of the ring and it followed him all the way down the hall to his locker room.
“He [Haney] said something and then ran out of the ring in some weird stuff,” he further stated. “I know Dev. He’s tougher than that. He should have stayed there and faced the music.”
Linares believes a rematch would turn out similarly
Former three division champion Jorge Linares is also on the same boat about the controversial verdict.
“They stole it (from Lomachenko)”, Linares said in an interview for KO Artist Sports as he left the arena in Las Vegas. “Be careful with your watch, with your wallet, because my God. Honestly, I had Lomachenko leading by two points, but you know, this is Vegas, Haney is young. It’s more business than boxing.”
Linares has already faced both boxers in the past and is the only fighter who has been able to knock Lomachenko down, as well as the only one who had Haney on the brink of a knockout.
However, the Venezuelan does not seem very enthusiastic about the possibility of a rematch between Haney and Lomachenko.
“If there is a rematch, maybe we will see the same fight,” Linares continued. “Loma is no longer the same as before. He will never be at the same level as when he fought me. But I don’t know, boxing is more business and show than fighting. They all saw it.”
When asked if Devin Haney can beat Gervonta Davis, Linares was emphatic in his response.
“No, that will never happen, because Tank is like a monster, an animal,” he added. “Haney is going to run and run and run. It’s an easy fight for Gervonta Davis. You know what would be nice? A fight between Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney. Also, Shakur and Haney would be good, they would sell a lot of tickets.”
