Ryan Garcia has closed the door on a rematch with Devin Haney after watching his interview today. Haney set the conditions for a second fight, saying they must be on his terms. Garcia says Haney will have to “live that left hook nightmare” from their fight last April, which Devin lost.
If Devin can’t get the rematch, he could be forever haunted by the memory of that terrible night and reliving it daily, even into old age. That would be pure torture. He’d be like a war veteran having flashbacks from battle and unable to let go.
Ryan refers to the left hook that he used to drop Haney six times in the fight, although the referee only counted three of them. The referee waived an additional three in the seventh round.
That’s a big setback for Haney, losing out on the rematch with Ryan because it would have been a huge payday. He’s not going to see that kind of money fighting anyone else, and his career could be over soon once he faces someone good.
With all that sweet cash from a rematch with Ryan, Haney and his dad, Bill, could have moved to the ‘Platinum Triangle’ in Los Angeles, purchasing a beautiful mansion in Beverly Hills, Holmby Hills, or Bell Air. Diddy has a mansion in Holmby Hills.
During an interview with Andre Ward today, the former two-division world champion Haney looked mentally broken and near tears as he discussed the events of his loss to Ryan in Brooklyn, New York.
If you had doubts about whether Haney had gotten past that loss, that interview showed that he’s still in bad shape and unable to let go of what happened to him. Promoter Eddie Hearn was right. Haney looks emotionally broken and might be physically broken. We won’t know that until he fights again.
Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) tried to explain away the loss, saying that he’d done everything right, but Garcia being on PEDs made him better. He sounded like a textbook example of a fighter in denial, still trying to make sense of what happened to him and using defensive mechanisms to distance himself from facing the bitter truth.
“I am competitive. Everything has got to be right. Everything has just got to be on my terms,” said Devin Haney to the All the Smoke Fight channel about a potential rematch with Ryan Garcia. “I tried to do it on your terms.”
Haney’s Denial
Devin Haney is still blaming his loss to Ryan Garcia on him being on PEDs for their fight on April 20th. Ryan tested positive for the banned substance PED Ostarine for the pre-fight and post-fight test, but he’d not tested positive for the other tests leading up to the contest in Brookln, New York.
Haney feels that the PEDs enhanced Ryan’s game, which led to him being dropped several times and beaten by a 12-round decision. Some people believe that Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) can’t accept that a better fighter defeated him and that he’d done a poor job of making adjustments during the contest.
Haney’s habit of excessive clinching to neutralize his opponents’ offense was the wrong approach against Ryan.
The constant holding Haney used against Ryan put him in his firing line for the short left hook he used, and he nailed him repeatedly with that punch. Haney would have been hit with that left hook even if Ryan hadn’t tested positive for a PED.
“I couldn’t figure it out [what he did wrong]. I fought a guy that did everything wrong leading up to the fight, and me doing everything right,” said Devin Haney to the All The Smoke Fight channel, talking about his loss to Ryan Garcia on April 20th.
If Haney still can’t figure out what he did wrong against Ryan, that is strange because anyone can see what he did wrong. The nonstop holding that Haney used to defeat George Kambosos Jr., Vasily Lomachenko, and Regis Prograis was ineffective against Ryan. That was the mistake. Haney should have stayed outside, throwing jabs and moving around the ring. He couldn’t do it because his clinching style had become too ingrained, and he couldn’t adapt.
“I had a great team, coaches, and game plan. It’s just hard to beat someone when they [have PEDs in their system]. PEDs are going to enhance whatever you got. He always had power and speed before that. PEDs are going to enhance whatever you got,” said Haney.
Garcia and Davis Unload on Haney
Ryan Garcia and Gervonta Davis recently united to ridicule Devin Haney, who blamed 'KingRy’s' positive performance-enhancing drug (PED) test as the reason for his defeat. 'The Dream' experienced his first career setback this past April in a showdown with Garcia.
Garcia entered the fight as a significant underdog but stunned Haney with three knockdowns, landing them in the seventh, 10th, and 11th rounds on his way to a dominant majority decision victory. The bout was ruled a non-title contest after Garcia came in overweight, which disqualified him from claiming Haney's WBC super lightweight championship.
However, a significant controversy erupted in May when 'KingRy' tested positive for the banned substance ostarine, leading to the bout's result being overturned to a no-contest. Consequently, Haney's defeat has been officially wiped from his record.
During a recent appearance on the ALL THE SMOKE FIGHT, Haney revealed that after his loss to Garcia, he took time to reflect on his performance and ultimately concluded that he wouldn’t have been defeated if his opponent hadn’t been using PEDs.
Garcia responded to Haney’s comments on X, accusing 'The Dream' of making excuses and failing to throw strikes during their fight. He also took jabs at Haney for his association with rapper Sean 'Diddy' Combs, who is facing allegations of sex trafficking:
Garcia's former rival, Davis, also echoed similar sentiments for Haney, claiming that he lacked any real game plan during the fight and is now unable to move past his setback. 'Tank' wrote:
Following his initial criticism of Devin Haney for not accepting his defeat with class, Ryan Garcia returned to X to issue a fresh wave of attacks against his longtime rival.
'KingRy' remarked that if Haney channeled even half the energy he spends on making excuses into honing his skills, he would see real improvement:
Haney’s Reflections
Devin Haney has taken a look back on how he could’ve approached the Ryan Garcia fight more effectively.
Back in April, Haney went one-on-one with Garcia inside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. This was initially going to be a WBC junior welterweight title bout, but Garcia missed weight. Garcia’s punching power was on full display, as he dropped Haney three times before the final bell sounded at the end of the 12th round.
Garcia had his hand raised at the end of the night, securing a majority decision win. With that said, his moment of triumph didn’t last. A failed VADA test for Ostarine took away Garcia’s win over Haney, who is once again officially undefeated.
While Haney has insisted that Garcia had an unfair advantage, he believes he could’ve done something differently to turn the tide.
Speaking to boxing legend Andre Ward on “The Art of Ward,” Devin Haney reflected on the Ryan Garcia fight. He discussed how he could’ve handled adversity more effectively.
“I was always trying to get back in the fight,” Haney said. “I never thought I’m overmatched or anything like that. I’m like, ‘I wanna get it back, I got to get that back.’ Maybe that was what could’ve been one of the things I could’ve, you know, maybe I could’ve got it back eventually. Build it, build it, build it, but when you’re in that moment and you a dog, you wanna get that back.”
Haney is now in the process of moving forward with his career. He recently claimed that WBO junior welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez turned down a fight with him in October. Haney remains medically suspended by the New York State Athletic Commission.
Haney On Ryan Garcia Rematch: It’s “Got To Be On My Terms”
Devin Haney says that a rematch between him and Ryan Garcia has to happen on his terms. Surprisingly, Devin treats his loss to Ryan last April like a win, which suggests he’s out of touch with reality.
Despite losing last April, Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) expects to be the A-side in the negotiations. In other words, Haney won’t be getting a rematch. Haney, 25, is nowhere near Ryan’s level of popularity.
There’s only one way a second fight between them can happen, and that’s with Ryan being the star with the bigger cut and top billing. Haney was never popular, to begin with, but fans look at him as damaged goods.
Ryan (24-1, 20 KOs) is the more popular fighter of the two, with his 12 million followers on Instagram and his ability to create huge interest in his fights. With that kind of following, Ryan is the A-side against almost anyone he faces.
“If he was right here, I’d get it back right now. I tried to do it fairly, and you [messed] up. I did everything right; all my [tests] came back clean. Everything’s got to be right; everything’s got to be on my terms,” said Devin Haney to the All The Smoke Fight channel when asked about a rematch with Ryan Garcia.
Haney will not get the rematch with Ryan unless he accepts that he’s the B-side and asks nicely for the second fight. Ryan is the one in control of this, and Haney is the needy one. Devin will not make the money he would get in a rematch with Ryan against anyone.
There’s no one at 140 or 147 with the kind of fame that Ryan has. Even Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, the IBF welterweight champion, isn’t anywhere clear to being as popular as Ryan Garcia. For Haney to get the kind of money he can get fighting Ryan, he would need to fight one of these two fighters:
– Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis – Canelo Alvarez
Tank Davis would likely insist on Haney fighting him at a catchweight of 137 lbs for him to consider facing him, which is physically impossible for Devin to do. There’s no way Haney could melt down from 165 lbs to 137 for a catchweight against Tank.
Canelo isn’t going to waste time by fighting Haney because he would be an even worse mismatch than facing Terence Crawford. Haney would be coming off a loss at 140 and moving up four divisions to face Canelo at 168 if the Mexican star agreed to that celebrity-level match.
Ryan Garcia Takes Shots at Haney and Diddy
Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney's feud seems to be never-ending. Even after their fight was turned into a no-contest and 'KingRy' was handed a one-year suspension from boxing for failed drug tests, the pair doesn't seem interested in settling their beef.
In a recent post on X, Garcia took aim at his former nemesis, shaming him for ties with American rapper Sean Combs popularly known as P Diddy. The 26-year-old reacted to a picture of Haney and Diddy seemingly partying together, writing:
Diddy has been hit with a whirlwind of allegations in recent times. He has been charged with sex trafficking and racketeering, including throwing salacious parties that have come to be referred to as 'Freak Offs.'
An indictment unsealed by a federal magistrate on Tuesday describes the 'Freak Offs' as gatherings where the rapper used his power and status to lure victims into performing sexual acts with male commercial sex workers.
The indictment accuses Combs as the driving force behind a scandalous sex crime-ridden organization that part takes in sex trafficking, forced labor, and prostitution.
Following raids in his LA and Miami homes, narcotics, three AR-15s with tampered serial numbers and more than 1000 bottles of baby oil and other lubricants were seized. The baby oil is believed to be a part of his 'Freak Offs' supplies.
Garcia cheekily trying to link Haney to Diddy's criminal enterprise doesn't come as a surprise since 'The Dream' and his team have been on his case ever since the failed drug tests.
Safe to say Ryan Garcia slamming Devin Haney for his links with P Diddy did not go unanswered. After 'KingRy' shamed his son on social media, Haney's father Bill, clapped back at the fighter.
In a recent post on X, Bill Haney posted a screenshot of a Chat GPT prompt that trash-talked 'KingRy'. In the description of the post, he wrote:
