Crawford Praises Haney, Fans Call It A Terrified Clinch-Fest

Terence Crawford praised Devin Haney after his win over WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr. last Saturday night, saying that he “shut a lot of people up again again.”

(Credit: Queensberry/Leigh Dawney)

Fans Aren’t Buying It

Fans on social media are questioning Crawford about what he saw in Haney’s performance that made him think he shut anyone up. He looked worse than ever, holding all night, looking scared to get hit, and throwing only 70 punches in the entire fight.

Some of the comments from fans roasting Haney’s performance:

“Clinching his a** off.”
“Shut up with that lame s***”
“Let’s not lie, boring to watch.”
“He fought the same as always. Hug and run.”
“Hugged all night. Come on now.”

Haney (33-0, 15 KOs) won a 12-round unanimous decision over an unconfident, stiff-looking Norman Jr. (28-1, 22 KOs) on the Ring IV event at the ANB Arena in Riyadh.

Why This Didn’t Shut Anyone Up

It wasn’t the type of performance that shut anyone up in terms of the fans who have criticized Haney for looking shell-shocked, gunshy, and afraid to get hit, as he looked just as terrified against Norman Jr. as he had in his previous abysmal performance against Jose Ramirez on May 2, 2025. There is no improvement in Haney’s courage level.

All that shit yall was talking about @Realdevinhaney and he went out there and shut a lot of people up once again.

— Terence Crawford (@terencecrawford) November 23, 2025

Clinch-First Fighting Again

The problem with Crawford backing Haney and making it seem like he was spectacular is that people saw the actual fight. They witnessed Haney holding all night, diving forward to clinch without even trying to throw a punch. Crawford’s post would be more powerful if fans hadn’t watched.

Bill Haney’s Spin Job

“We always said he has the best jab in the business. You got to see him bust him up with the jab,” said Bill Haney to Seconds Out, talking about Devin Haney landing some jabs against Brian Norman Jr.

The swelling in Norman Jr.’s right eye was from a head-clash, not from Haney’s jab. There no busting up involved in the fight. It was a clash of heads, not much else, from Devin. He only landed 70 punches in the entire 12-round fight, which is on par with the low number he turned in against Jose Ramirez last May.

“I always said he has the best feet,” said Bill about Devin. “He’s a remarkable young man, and I can’t say enough about him.”