One of the biggest storylines occurred on April 20 when Ryan Garcia gave undefeated boxing champion Devin Haney his first professional loss. The weeks leading up to the fight had everyone guessing, especially with Garcia’s wild behavior on social media. He was shown slurring his words and making conspiracy claims that he knows who murdered rapper Tupac Shakur.
Garcia showcased some alarming behavior, which worried many people and left the impression the fight was going to be called off. The fight was not called off, even after Garcia chugged a beer during his ceremonial weigh-in.
Ryan Kang/Getty Images
What did occur during the weigh-in was Garcia was revealed to be 3.2 lbs over the limit for his fight with Haney. The pair put up a clause in the contract that whoever was overweight had to pay a sum of $500,000 per pound. Garcia now owes his opponent $1.5 million.
Despite the antics and social media behavior, Garcia put on a clinic against Haney, giving the young boxer his first professional loss. With three knockdowns, Garcia walked away the victor via majority decision. He unfortunately could not win Haney’s belts due to coming in over the agreed-upon 140-lb weight.
Garcia might have been playing mind games, as he told the crowd, “Come on guys, you really thought I was crazy,” right after his big win.
The glitz and glamour of the win has now faded, as another bombshell surrounding the fight occurred. Garcia has reportedly tested positive for a banned performance-enhancing drug called Ostarine. The news was reported by ESPN.
Garcia has since claimed that this news is not accurate on his X page.
Garcia could still be cleared if he requests his B-sample be tested within 10 days. The revelation that he may have been hit with a banned substance also led to another big social media fight, this time involving Deebo Samuel of the San Francisco 49ers and Haney.
Either way he got outboxed
— Deebo (@19problemz) May 2, 2024
Samuel commented on Garcia’s win despite the news about the potential PED substance, stating, “Either way he got outboxed.”
Though Samuel did not advocate for Garcia potentially using a banned substance, he did indicate that Haney was outboxed. Haney caught wind of this and responded as well.
Haney stated, “***** like u can’t fight a lick. A ***** would real life punch you in real life.”
Samuel responded again with a video.
The video showcases one of the moments when Garcia hits Haney with vicious punches, knocking him down to the canvas. Samuel used the zipped lip emojis to portray his response.
Garcia has yet to be cleared of any wrongdoing, and the B-test results could come out soon. Still, Samuel decided to come to Garcia’s defense, stating he was still the better of the two at the end of the day.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.