‘He needs to retire’: Joel Diaz blasts Haney’s performance against Ramirez

Trainer Joel Diaz says Devin Haney should just spare the sport of boxing by retiring if he’s going to perform like he just did.

We continue to feel the fallout from this weekend’s awful events with trainer Joel Diaz also going off on the Times Square card that made for awful viewing. Diaz, in the same vein as Tim Bradley, sounds off on the fighters featured on that event and even goes so far as calling for Devin Haney’s retirement. Here’ some excerpts of what Diaz had to say.

Diaz on the Times Square card

“It’s disappointing for the boxing world, for the fans. Me, as a trainer, I watch fights...they promised three great fights in Times Square. There was no fights. Honestly, it was boring watching those fights and it’s upsetting that those guys get paid the top dollar for that. They don’t perform based on their paychecks.”

On if this is yet another black eye for boxing

“You know, I’ve seen worse. I saw Shakur Stevenson fight Dos Santos, the Dominican kid. I mean, come on. One or two punches a round? That’s not boxing...I think this new era of boxing is more about show than fighting.”

On Haney’s fight against Ramirez

“Devin, when he lets go of his hands he lands because he has accuracy. But why doesn’t he let go of his punches? I mean, look, Ramirez was pressuring the whole fight, He wanted to engage because Ramirez wanted to fight, but you got to have a partner, right? You got to have a partner to exchange but there was no partner for him, he was just chasing the rabbit around the whole ring.

“He needs to retire, man. Devin Haney needs to retire and just let the real fighters get in the ring and perform. Honestly, never been a fan of his boxing. The only good fight I saw him was when he fought Linares, and I saw the fight because of Linares, not because of him. But these kinds of performances, man, he should just retire.

“Ryan, I like Ryan. Ryan’s a great guy but once he got hit with a left hook, what happened to that anger in you. When he fought [Luke Campbell] he got dropped and he came back and boom, demolished him. Yesterday he did totally the opposite.