The WBC has ordered light welterweight champion Devin Haney (35-1, 15 KOs) to defend against his mandatory challenger Sandor Martin (42-3, 15 KOs).
Martin has been waiting for his chance to fight for a world title, and he’s not likely to accept a step aside. He wants a rightful opportunity now, and it’s the ideal time, with Haney coming off a loss to Ryan Garcia and his punch resistance possibly no longer intact.
According to Mundo Deportivo, purse bids for the Haney vs. Martin fight are scheduled for June 18th.
It’ll be interesting to see if Haney goes through with this title defense against Martin or if he possibly vacates his WBC title. Giving up the belt will free Haney to look for a lucrative match against one of the popular fighters at 140, like Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz or Teofimo Lopez.
If Haney wants to keep his WBC title, he can offer Sandor a step aside, but that’s not likely to work. The mandatory is already overdue, and Sandor will likely want to fight Haney now, with him coming off a loss against Ryan Garcia and his chin now vulnerable.
Martin gave Teofimo Lopez huge problems in his 10-round split decision loss to him in December 2022 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Many fans who saw that fight agree that Sandor was given a raw deal, losing a fight that they felt he easily should have won.
Haney can’t be happy with the news that he was ordered to defend his WBC 140-lb title against the Spaniard Sandor, 30, because he’s a tough out, and it’s not a fight that will bring in a lot of PPV buys on DAZN.
If Haney is going to insist on his fight against Martin being shown on DAZN, he’s got to be prepared for it to bring in a low number of PPV buys because it’s not a PPV-worthy match-up.
It might be a good idea for Haney to follow Ryan Garcia’s example from his fight against Oscar Duarte last December and put his match against Martin on regular DAZN.
If Haney loses to Martin, his career will be toast, and it’ll be almost impossible for him to come back from that defeat without returning to the 135-lb division, where he would have a huge weight advantage over his opponents.
