“We have a couple guys that we’re looking at, one being Liam Paro, who’s, you know, he has a belt,” Bill said on It Is What It Is. “So that would make Devin a unified champion and force some of the other champions in the ring.”

The Australian is hardly a mainstream attraction in the United States, appealing mostly to hardcore boxing fans. His IBF belt makes him valuable to Haney.

Bill keeps revisiting the bigger opponents who slipped away. He insists Team Haney accepted a Shakur fight at 147 before running into resistance. He also claims the funding existed for an Ennis bout, with Haney accepting while Boots walked away.

Then there is Keyshawn. Bill claims roughly $3 million was available for Davis, with another $1 million that he was willing to find to help close the deal.

The Haneys were not helpless spectators in those negotiations. They place a premium price on Devin, and hard negotiating can make difficult fights even harder to complete. If Keyshawn needed an additional financial push, Devin could have surrendered some of his own purse to sweeten the deal. Similar compromises might have helped keep some of the other fights from slipping away.

Facing Paro brings entirely different demands. Haney is nearing a full year out of the ring and needs more than another routine decision to strengthen his brand.

His WBO title win over Brian Norman Jr. delivered little entertainment value. After scoring an early knockdown, Haney spent much of the night jabbing, circling and clinching. Norman became hesitant once he got inside, allowing Haney to shut down his offense without having to produce much of his own.

Paro will not be that obliging.

The Australian comes forward looking to unload heavy shots. He can punch, he’s aggressive, and he isn’t likely to reach firing range and then second-guess himself the way Norman did. More importantly, Paro is an excellent inside fighter. Clinching doesn’t necessarily end his offense because he can continue working at close range and digging to the body.

Haney therefore may have to produce considerably more offense than he did against Norman. Jabbing, moving and grabbing whenever Paro gets close may not be enough if the IBF champion keeps throwing once he gets there.

Given Haney’s performances against Ryan Garcia, Jose Ramirez and Norman, a strong effort is overdue. His last dominant display came against Regis Prograis in December 2023, when he dropped Prograis and controlled all 12 rounds.

A safety-first points victory over Paro would collect another belt. Beating an aggressive champion while producing sustained offense would do considerably more for Haney’s brand.

Bill can keep mentioning Shakur, Boots, Tank and Keyshawn, but none of them is currently headed toward a fight with Devin. Paro is the opponent being discussed.

If Haney beats him convincingly and unifies the WBO and IBF titles, Bill will finally have something better to promote than another list of fights that got away.