Regis Prograis: Devin Haney’s skillful, but he’s never been in there with somebody like me

LOS ANGELES – Although his sweat is sparkling from the Southern California sun following an intense sparring session, Bayou-born boxer Regis Prograis is New Orleans through and through, as evidenced by the city name and skyline tattooed across his chest.

“The Big Easy” is not a nickname that can be used to describe Prograis’ path to becoming a world champion. He officially picked up boxing at the age of 16 in 2005 just as Hurricane Katrina destroyed his family home and forced a move to Houston. 

Prograis turned pro in 2012 as an unheralded prospect even though he had a reported amateur record of 87-7. He first fought with little fanfare while working odd jobs to support his family.

But “Rougarou” quickly evolved into a southpaw-slugging boogeyman with a bite. He caught the attention of Lou DiBella and signed a promotional deal and soon after became the pride of the Crescent City when he won his first world title in 2019.

Achieving greatness was no longer a pipedream for the power-punching WBC 140-pound titleholder, so he inked inspirational portraits of Jack Johnson, Henry Armstrong, Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Marvin Hagler, and Bruce Lee across his body throughout his ascent. 

Prograis (29-1, 24 KOs) is a throwback fighter who’s cut from an old-school cloth, and he’s promising a legendary performance like the all-time greats he idolizes when he takes on Devin Haney (30-0, 15 KOs) on Saturday. The tantalizing tilt takes place at the Chase Center in San Francisco on DAZN PPV ($59.99; North America).

“My road has never been easy. It’s always been kind of bumpy. I’m a two-time world champion and I don’t get the recognition I deserve. But this fight is going to put me on the map where I belong,” said Prograis. “I am on the verge of superstardom.”

Perhaps a parade on Bourbon Street should be in store if Prograis beats Haney. 

The former undisputed lightweight champion vacated all of his belts after outpointing Vasiliy Lomachenko in May and opted to move up to the junior welterweight division. 

Prograis understands why Haney wants to fight him without taking a feel-out fight first in his new weight class, and why many sportsbooks have him as a near +300 betting underdog.

“Let him be the favorite. Everyone is beatable. I’m confident in myself. Haney should be worried about what I’m going to bring,” said Prograis.

“I’m going to beat him. I am an all-around better fighter than him. People can say whatever they want about his jab, but I’m not convinced by any of the s*** he does. He’s good. He’s skillful. But he’s never been in there with somebody like me … But resume-wise, [Haney] was the best 135-pounder. You can’t argue against undisputed.”

Most prognosticators are picking Prograis to lose against the fast-ascending challenger Haney partly due to Prograis’ most recent performance. 

The Ring’s No. 2 ranked 140-pound fighter, Prograis sneaked by Danielito Zorrilla with a split-decision victory in June during a homecoming fight in New Orleans. 

Although Prograis dropped Zorrilla, the fight was a stinker by all accounts, as both boxers landed just 84 total punches combined. It was a far cry from Prograis’ title-clinching, 11th-round stoppage performance against Jose Zepeda last year.  

The 34-year-old Prograis later admitted that hometown distractions played a part in his lackluster showing during his Matchroom Boxing promotional debut. 

“Zorrilla’s game plan was to run around and survive. In the ring, I knew it was a sh**** night. I was in a fog and never woke up from it,” said Prograis. “Just because you have an off night though, it’s not your identity.”

So Prograis switched things up in search of a new look. 

He embarked on a career-long, four-month camp filled with many days featuring three workouts at his new home base, the Brickhouse Boxing Club in North Hollywood, California. Sandwiched in between was a multi-week stretch of camp near his Houston home. 

Longtime head trainer Bobby Benton is still in his corner, but new to the team for this camp in a full-time role is coach Julian Chua, a trainer who guides the likes of Stephen Fulton, Gilberto Ramirez, and John “Scrappy” Ramirez, among others. 

Strength and conditioning coach Evins Tobler – a subject of testy exchanges with the Haneys throughout the promotion – is also an integral part of the Prograis team.

“I’ve been working on a lot of things. I know I have the tools to beat Haney, but now we’re putting all of the pieces together,” said Prograis. “Everyone is here feeding off of each other, and for me, that’s what I want, that’s what I need.” 

Chua said Prograis has been drilling on tactical improvements, like positioning and cutting off the ring to disrupt the deft Haney. 

“Regis has a chip on his shoulder, and I do too [with the off night vs. Zorilla]. It’s a slap in the face that we’re the underdogs. We’ve earned our due. We’re prepared for everything,” said Benton. “Haney is a great fighter, don’t get it twisted. But I think Regis is the better fighter all the way around. He’s underrated in everything he does. He just needs to be himself against Haney.” 

“I can see Regis doing exactly what he needs to do and knock Devin out,” said Chua. 

The promotion leading up to the fight between both fighters has been brash at times, but there have been several instances of mutual respect as well. 

Haney considers Prograis to be the best fighter at 140 pounds but says he’s a flat-footed boxer who only looks to land one big shot at a time.

Prograis doesn’t deem Haney to be a defensive master and promises to disfigure his face, knocking Haney out whenever he wants due to his lack of punch resistance. 

But Prograis also believes Haney could be the stronger and bigger fighter come fight night. 

So he tasked several welterweights and junior middleweights among his sparring partners during this camp to better build him for the imposing battle. 

Outside of the Zepeda victory, the best performance of Prograis’ 11-year career came against Josh Taylor in 2019 in a spirited slugfest resulting in a majority decision loss. 

After previously having issues making weight, Prograis now employs a nutritionist and envisions a run at 140 pounds for the rest of his career, just like his idol Hagler had at middleweight.

Prograis realizes that a win against Haney will allow him to seize mouthwatering matchups and get paid handsomely to fight the likes of Teofimo Lopez Jr. and Ryan Garcia as well as Gervonta Davis and Shakur Stevenson whenever they move up to the weight class. A rematch with Taylor is also on his to-do list. 

“Sometimes in boxing, you marinate fights too long and then they spoil. Right now we’re in the era of making super fights,” said Prograis. “I want big-money and high-profile fights – we’re sick of seeing fights that are mismatched.” 

Prograis relishes the opportunities that are around the corner. 

He knows he needs to score the upset of the year to get there. 

But beating Haney will be a bumpy road, just like his beginnings.

Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer, and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, through email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com, or via www.ManoukAkopyan.com.

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