Ryan Garcia is now a bona fide American boxing star. But his refusal to rematch Devin Haney over an unresolved drug test feud may be costing him the biggest fight available.
Haney rematch does at least five, maybe more, times the numbers that Conor Benn fight did last night in the US and around the planet.
Some notes on this;
- The T-Mobile Arena crowd roared for Garcia all night
- The event streamed on Paramount+ in the US
- A Haney rematch would have been for undisputed supremacy
- Garcia won’t fight Haney unless he “tells the truth” on their PED test before their fight some years ago
- Haney has called the rematch his “dream fight”
- The 2024 fight became a no-contest after a positive drugs test for Garcia, trace amounts of a banned substance
- Both fighters are similar age and campaigning at welterweight
- Garcia’s focus has shifted toward Teofimo Lopez instead
- The Haney rematch would likely be a bigger commercial event
- Garcia is holding the rematch hostage over an apology
Garcia also moves into the boxing pound for pound rankings for the moment also, adding to his star in the US and beyond.
The big one is the Garcia vs Haney rematch but the Ryan Garcia vs Gervonta Tank Davis rematch remains maybe an even bigger fight, perhaps.
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