Bill Haney blocked the potential showdown between Devin Haney and Shakur Stevenson, according to allegations from Jay Prince, who asserts that the father intervened in a match the boxer actually desired.
Prince lays the responsibility squarely at Bill’s feet. According to him, both camps had settled on a 145-pound catchweight until team Haney pushed to raise it to 147, ultimately stripping Stevenson of his scheduled bout.
“In my view, Devin was eager to fight. Bill was the one who refused, and I believe they devised a scheme to undermine the event,” Prince stated to Fight Hub TV.
This stands as a major allegation, though Prince provided his personal take on Bill’s intentions rather than hard proof. He maintains that Devin was ready to step in, whereas his father always opposed the matchup.
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“I feel they had no real intent to make it happen overall. Devin did, but Bill never favored that matchup and found a tactic to shut it down.”
Furthermore, Prince refuted claims regarding a rehydration limit, disputing Haney’s assertion that this condition served as a major sticking point.
“There was never any rehydration limit. We concurred on 145, and Shakur was actively in camp for it,” Prince stated.
A negotiated catchweight differs from a rehydration boundary. While Prince acknowledges the fight required competing below the 147-pound threshold, he insists no secondary cap on fight-night weight gain was ever requested.
His version of events leaves both sides offering conflicting narratives regarding the breakdown of talks. Prince highlights an abrupt effort to modify the settled weight limit, whereas the Haney side points to a rehydration restriction that Prince firmly denies was ever on the table.
At the same time, Stevenson’s representative is firmly resisting a prompt jump to welterweight. Prince noted that facing Haney at 147 pounds could be an option in 12 to 18 months, but stressed they will not be rushed by external expectations.
Consequently, a near-term deal appears highly unlikely. Although Prince feels confident Shakur could defeat Haney at 147, his camp insists on controlling the timeline for that transition. Until either party relaxes its stance on weight terms, the ongoing verbal back-and-forth will generate more drama than any actual bout in the ring.
