When Devin Haney (30-0) and Shakur Stevenson (20-0) were teenagers, they went toe-to-toe in a classic sparring matchup at Floyd Maywheather Jr.'s gym in Las Vegas. As the pair aged into their twenties, they evolved into champions within the professional boxing ranks. Hence, their previous Olympic training sessions became somewhat of a precursor to a rivalry over the years that still has not produced an officially sanctioned match. But when it comes to taking verbal shots at one another, they rarely pull punches.
About five months ago, Shakur Stevenson got into a heated argument with Devin and his father/trainer Bill Haney about a potential super fight on Instagram Live. In the weeks leading up to his title defense against Vasiliy Lomachenko (17-3), Devin took a slight detour to acknowledge his ongoing back-and-forth banter with Stevenson during an appearance on the DAZN Boxing Show.
“[Shakur and I sparred] When I was 16, and he was 17, but for the majority of our sparring sessions when we were at Olympic Training Center, and when he came to stay with us here in Vegas, and the sparring was back and forth,” Haney said. “There was times when he got the best of me, and there was times when I got the best of him, but our latest sparring session was when I was 16 years old, and he was getting ready to go Olympics so I mean, if we count those then it is what it is. What he did [when we were kids], and we’re we [are both at now], a lot of guys that got the best of me when I was [younger], and look where they are now they are not even boxing.”
Moments after Haney's controversial defeat of Lomachenko, Stevenson hopped in the ring wearing his street clothes before sharing his belief with an interviewer that Lomachenko should have been declared the winner over Haney in the closely contested 12-round matchup. The 25-year-old also made time to stare down his rival, who quickly acknowledged him with a smile before reminding him that he was still the undisputed lightweight champion, whether he agreed with the decision or not.
"For now!" Stevenson shouted as he returned the grin. "For Now!"
Although Stevenson previously enjoyed title reigns as the WBO Featherweight Champion and Super Featherweight Champion, he is currently #4 in the lightweight division, one spot behind Gervonta "Tank" Davis (29-0), according to ESPN. The hope is that their subliminal messages, verbal confrontations, and in-ring dominance within the division will eventually lead to a title fight. Still, no such bout has been scheduled as of yet.
Scroll up to watch their latest exchange.
Source: Instagram
