Richardson Hitchins is practically the last person you’d expect to defend Devin Haney from criticism, but he feels like he must.

In New York’s Times Square last weekend, Haney was supposed to have his rebirth. Although his loss to Ryan Garcia was officially scrubbed thanks to his rival's two failed drug tests, many were unsure if Haney would be the same. Jose Ramirez, a former unified champ with just enough gas in the tank, tested that theory.

By and large, you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who enjoyed watching their fight. Haney boxed, moved and moved some more. Since then, there’s been a wave of criticism thrown in his direction.

Hitchins, who sat ringside throughout it all, didn’t find Haney particularly fun to watch. And while he admittedly yawned for most of it, he didn’t have a problem with Haney using the entire ring to his advantage.

“It looked like Devin Haney at his finest,” Hitchins told The Ring during a recent one-on-one interview. “It don’t get any better than that. He boxed, smart legs, speed, hit and don’t get hit.”

Haney was hopeful Garcia would hold up his end of the bargain by beating Rolly Romero so they could rematch later this year. That, of course, wasn’t to be the case as the underdog crashed the party with a wide unanimous decision victory.

Haney, though, may not care about Garcia’s shortcomings and could pursue a sequel anyway. Deep discussions will take place to determine his direction, but considering how he looked coupled with Garcia’s loss, an immediate rematch might be a hard sell.

Ultimately, Haney wouldn’t be in this position if he failed to get the win against Ramirez. And while it wasn’t an all-out action thriller, Hitchins applauds him for getting the job done.

“I think he did what he had to do, not take too many chances, and got the victory.”