Ryan Garcia told boxing fans and media to ignore his bizarre behavior ahead of his fight with Devin Haney. That proved impossible for many, but Garcia made his point on Saturday night, dropping Haney three times en route to a majority decision victory in a thrilling bout.
via: ESPN
Garcia (25-1, 20 KOs) was a major underdog and virtually counted out entering Saturday evening. His blinding, powerful left hook turned the tide as Garcia scored three knockdowns to pull the upset via majority decision at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.
One judge scored the bout 112-112 but was overruled by scores of 114-110 and 115-109 for Garcia. However, Garcia wasn’t eligible to win Haney’s WBC junior welterweight title after he weighed 143.2 pounds Friday for the 140-pound contest. Haney remains the champion in defeat, but it’s Garcia who scored the career-best win by knocking off ESPN’s No. 6 pound-for-pound boxer.
“I don’t give a f— what people say about me. I walked through the fire and still held it down and still beat f—ing Devin Haney and still drink every day,” said Garcia, 25. “Not necessarily am I proud of that, but I’m just saying it was a statement to show you, you guys can’t really f— with me.”
Haney was a -900 favorite earlier in the week, according to ESPN BET, but he closed at -575. Garcia pretended to drink a beer at Friday’s weigh-in and paid Haney upward of $600,000, sources told ESPN, as part of the deal for the fight to proceed.
Garcia, meanwhile, lost in his only previous bout on the elite level, a seventh-round KO defeat by Gervonta Davis in an April 2023 superfight. A body shot put Garcia down for the count.
But one year later, Garcia proved that he too is an upper-echelon fighter capable of beating the best. Maybe all the turbulence during the promotion aided Garcia in some paradoxical way.
Ryan Garcias Best Moments |Highlights| ????
Go crazy with it like the last one ??#RyanGarcia #DevinHaney #GarciaVsHaney pic.twitter.com/ZP6aZrFoz5
— The progress report (@Theprogressrep2) April 21, 2024
RYAN GARCIA HANDS DEVIN HANEY THE FIRST LOSS OF HIS CAREER ? pic.twitter.com/IWZkv488h4
— ESPN Ringside (@ESPNRingside) April 21, 2024
