Subriel Matias, IBF light welterweight champion, listed his top 10 fighters in the 140-lb division, surprisingly placing challenger Liam Paro at rock bottom. Matias (20-1, 20 KOs) defends against Paro (24-0, 15 KOs) this Saturday night, June 15th, live on DAZN at the Coliseo Juan Aubin Cruz Abreu in Manati, Puerto Rico.
Haney Branded a “Chicken”
Devin Haney, the WBC 140-lb champion, is low on Matias’ list at #5, labeling him as a “chicken” because of his fighting style and his risk-averse match-making.
Haney’s recent loss to Ryan Garcia is an obvious reason he’s placed low on Matias’ top 10 list, but he’s lucky to be ranked that high. His loss to Ryan on April 20th was a bad one.
- Regis Prograis
- Jose Ramirez
- Teofimo Lopez
- Jack Catterall
- Ryan Garcia
- Devin Haney
- Richardson Hitchins
- Isaac Cruz
- Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero
- Liam Paro
Prograis at the Top, Despite Recent Loss
Prograis (29-2, 24 KOs) hasn’t fought since losing his WBC light welterweight title against Haney last December, and it’s questionable whether he’s going to bounce back from that loss.
The 35-year-old Prograis looked slow, old, and overmatched against Haney in that one-sided twelve-round unanimous decision defeat at the Chase Center in San Francisco, California.
Of course, Haney’s rehydrated weight of 165 lbs put Prograis in a virtually unwinnable situation due to the massive size of his challenger.
“Haney, the chicken at 6, he doesn’t take offence,” said Subriel Matias to Matchroom Boxing, rating his top fighters at 140.
Rolly Romero’s Placement Surprises
“Look, it’s Rolly Romero. He shouldn’t be here. He’s from McDonald’s. Catterall, let’s put him at 4 so he’s not upset. He’ll be our next prey, God willing.”
Matias placing Rolly Romero over Liam Paro is an interesting ranking because that doesn’t make much sense.
The former WBA light welterweight champion Rolly (15-2, 13 KOs) looked horrible in his recent eighth-round knockout loss to Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz on March 30th in Las Vegas.
Even before that loss, Rolly was getting worked over in his fight against 40-year-old Ismael Barroso in Las Vegas last year in May 2023.
That was the fight in which the referee, Tony Weeks, suddenly stepped in and halted the contest in the ninth round, giving Rolly a knockout victory after throwing a flurry of shots, with most punches hitting the air.
“Look Prograis at #1. That coward. You’re scared of me, p****y,” said Matias.
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