The first weekend of May was expected to deliver a thrilling lineup of boxing action. Instead, it ended up being remembered as one of the most underwhelming in recent memory. The main culprits? Devin Haney, Ryan Garcia, and William Scull. Haney and Scull, in particular, came under heavy scrutiny for their performances, with both fights criticized for a lack of engagement and action, resulting in some of the most disappointing stats of the year.

Haney’s fight against Jose Ramirez became the boxing match with the fourth fewest punches thrown in a 12-round fight in CompuBox’s history. Meanwhile, Scull’s fight against Canelo Alvarez was even worse, recording the fewest punches thrown combined in a 12-round boxing match in CompuBox’s history. In light of all this, His Excellency Turki Alalshikh, the man behind organizing both fights, has given a startling warning. 

“From this point on, I don’t want to see any more Tom and Jerry-type boxing matches where one fighter is running around the ring and the other is chasing him,” His Excellency Turki Alalshikh wrote on X recently. Alalshikh’s description has an eerie similarity with Haney’s fight against Ramirez, which even the commentators of the fight could not ignore when it was unfolding. “If ever there was a fight capable of inducing a nap in Times Square, it would be this one,” Jim Lampley said.

“The judges won’t have a scorecard because they’re all asleep,” Conor Benn had tweeted. Regardless, coming back to Alalshikh, the Chairman of GEA further added that The Ring and Riyadh Season can no longer support such fights, adding, “We want to support fighters who leave it all in the ring and fight with heart and pride!” It’s also worth noting that Devin Haney was in talks to fight Teofimo Lopez after Garcia failed to produce a win against Rolando Romero. 

However, those talks have collapsed as ‘The Takeover’ backed out of the potential fight. While Lopez’s manager cited personal reasons for his withdrawal, speculations suggest that the real issue is the lack of interest surrounding the fight. Nevertheless, it’s not all bad for the 26-year-old.

Undefeated super lightweight boxer ready to fight Devin Haney

While His Excellency Turki Alalshikh might not fund it, undefeated super lightweight boxer Adam Azim seems eager to jump in the ring with ‘The Dream.’ With Lopez out of the picture, Azim has thrown his name in the hat. “I would fight Haney next week,” Azim told Sky Sports. Reflecting on Haney’s excessive lateral movement, Azim seemed confident his speed would get him the win.

“If he’s running on the back foot, throwing one jab every two rounds, why not?” he said. “For me, I can fight front foot and back foot.” Azim feels Devin Haney has just enough power to keep his opponents at bay, but doesn’t believe Haney has the knockout power. “If I [were] going to fight him, I think I’d beat him with speed.” Azim, who’s fresh off a win over Sergey Lipinets, is now set to fight Eliot Chavez on short notice.

That being said, it appears the architect of Riyadh Season is done with slow and boring fights. Now, he only wants to make bouts that would keep him on the edge of his seat. However, it’s easier said than done. It would be interesting to see if Devin Haney ever appears on the Riyadh Season card again. Do you think Alalshikh’s announcement was in response to Haney’s performance?