Despite the official fight being months away, the Devin Haney vs Brian Norman Jr. rivalry has spiraled out of control already. The duo will face each other on November 22 at the ‘Ring IV’ event, and the hype is enigmatic. Fans are desperately looking forward to it, courtesy of ‘The Assassin II’s brutal knockout win against Jin Sasaki last month.

However, with the sensational run that the WBO welterweight champion is on, it seems like a mammoth task for the California native, who will venture into this division officially for the first time. A point that Shawn Porter raised, claiming that Devin Haney will eventually back out.  In a recent The Porter Way Podcast episode, the former welterweight champion acknowledged the immense potential of Brian Norman Jr.. The Ohian mentioned how the November bout has immense upside for Norman, but for Devin Haney, the matchup doesn’t make sense. “I can’t imagine the camp is comfortable enough to take this fight. So I’m gonna go on record for saying this, I don’t think the fight happens,” he declared, claiming that ‘The Dream’s’ team will eventually realize that and back out ahead of the event.

As the podcast went viral, ‘X’ user, @JhusLeftarm shared the clip on his profile with the caption, “Shawn Porter predicts someone in Devin Haney camp will pull the plug😳 on the Brian Norman fight.” The clip eventually got Devin Haney’s attention, who expectedly fired back. He replied, “Pull the plug like his daddy did him in the Bud fight?” referring to Porter’s infamous loss against Terence Crawford in 2021.

During the 2021 bout, Porter’s father, Kenny Porter, threw in the towel in the 10th round, ending the fight early. The 10th round saw Crawford knocking down ‘Showtime’ twice, prompting his father to take the decision. In the post-match conference, the 37-year-old expressed his disappointment before announcing his retirement.

It was a somber moment in Ohian’s career, and you didn’t have to ask Devin Haney twice to exploit that. Despite Porter clarifying that, “I’m not saying they’re ducking Brian Norman Jr.,” ‘The Dream’ didn’t care. After all, the Haney duo thrives on stirring the pot, pushing everyone to their limits. However, it seems like for the first time, they might face consequences.

Devin Haney is in legal trouble again

With the stakes higher than ever, the tensions between Haney and Norman Jr. are sky high. And when the duo came face-to-face during the ‘Ring III’ press conference, it exploded. They got into an all-out brawl, with their fathers alongside them. The situation turned dire when the former lightweight champion shoved Norman Jr. to the ground. Security intervened as Norman Sr. vowed to make Haney face repercussions amid the turmoil. It appears he’s determined to keep that promise. After the brawl, he uploaded a self-recorded message to his Instagram profile, prompting some tough days for his rivals. “Y’all remember this? Y’all know I just had surgery right? So I got one arm,” he said, showing off the said arm.

The 46-year-old threatened to use the Haneys’ signature tactics, igniting a legal battle. “So with the situation that went down today, what would I do? If I was Haney, I would sue,” he said. However, for Norman Sr., it will be beneath him. “But, I am a Norman. Ain’t got no time for it. We gonna step on him like we said, we gonna step over him. We gonna get the bag, and we going to move on. That’s what we going to do,” he declared, stating that the matter will be settled inside the ring.

The Normans aren’t throwing down the gauntlet just yet, but Devin Haney and his dad better keep their guard up. If Norman Sr. really has a valid injury, he’s got a three-year window to file a lawsuit under New York’s statute of limitations. The rivalry’s heating up, and one misstep could send him flying off the handle, leading to a bold move. Considering Haney’s track record, they know there’s at least one misstep waiting to happen before September 22nd. What’s your take on this?