Undisputed lightweight king Devin “The Dream” Haney (29-0, 15 KOs) and former three-weight world champion and pound-for-pound king Vasiliy “Loma” Lomachenko (17-2, 11 KOs) met face-to-face for the first time Thursday in Los Angeles at the official kickoff press conference for their PPV clash on May 20 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Vasiliy Lomachenko: “We never know what will happen. We can prepare for one strategy, but in the ring it can all change. Right now, I don’t know. I just train hard and prepare. I believe in God and in my team.”

Devin Haney: “When he had the belts, he didn’t want to fight me. But it’s a fight where I truly believe I am the better fighter. I’m the better competitor. I will be victorious. I’m happy that the time has finally come.

“This is a legacy fight for me. Loma at one time was #1 pound-for-pound. A few months ago, he was higher than me on the pound-for-pound list. Now that the fight has been made, he has dropped off the pound-for-pound list. But it is what it is. We know what type of fighter he is. He deserves to be on the pound-for-pound list. Not above me, but definitely on the list. But this is a legacy fight. This is a real fight. This is not an influencer fight. This is really for the belts. This is for the gold. This is possibly to determine the best in the world as well.”

“The better the opposition, the better I am. Loma is a good fighter. But I’m on a totally different level. On fight night, the world will see that. The world will see how good Devin Haney really is.”