By: Ken Hissner
Unbeaten Lightweight Devin “The Dream” Haney and 3-time world title challenger Juan Carlos Burgos will battle for the vacant IBF North American Lightweight Title Friday at the Pechanga Resort & Casino, in Temecula, CA. This will be on ShoBox: The Next Generation triple header with Davin Haney Promotions.
“I’ve been saying for a while now that I always felt like I was my own promoter. And I feel like a lot of other fighters feel they are their own promoter as well because they do all the marketing, they do their social media, and they are getting their name out there. I’m just one of those fighters that took the initiative to actually go get my promoters license and go all the way with this,” said Haney. He is also starting his own stable of fighters including Darren Cunningham, 6-0, who will be on the card.
The 19 year-old Haney, 19-0 (13) is promoted by Top Rank and won the vacant USBA Lightweight title in his last fight in Philadelphia defeating Mason Menard, 33-2 who retired at the end of the ninth round. This is scheduled for 10 rounds.
Vargas has challenged for world titles at Featherweight and Super Featherweight and is stepping up to lightweight. “He’s fought in Tijuana a bunch of times (10) so I’ve seen him in person. I didn’t really pay attention to him at that time. He has ability. He’s hungry with good skills but I don’t think he’s ready for a fighter like me. He’s too young and I’m an experienced fighter that knows how to win,” said Burgos.
The co-feature is a re-match in July between Thomas “Gunna Man” Mattice, 13-0 (10), of Cleveland, OH, and Armenian Zhora Hamazaryan, 9-1 (6), out of L.A. with Mattice winning a controversial 8 round split decision with Mattice hitting the deck in the second round. This was why just three months later they are in a rematch. Mattice is promoted by Banner Promotions and Hamazaryan by Thompson Boxing. This is scheduled for 8 rounds.
For Hamazaryan it will be his third straight fight in the US with his previous fights being in Russia.
Rounding out the triple header another 8 rounder between Super Middleweight German born Cem “Champ” Kilic, 11-0 (7), out of Sherman Oaks, CA, and DeAndre Ware, 12-0-2 (8), of Toledo, OH.
Just last month Kilic stopped Joe Amouta, 7-1-1, in 3 rounds. All but one of his fights (Mexico) has been in the US. In June in his last fight he defeated Puerto Rico’s Enrique “Kikin” Collazo, 11-0-1 (9), in a majority decision over 8 rounds.