Ryan Garcia, in an astonishing turn of events, has failed to meet the weight criteria for his global super lightweight championship battle with Devin Haney. This led to last-minute negotiations between the camps to allow Saturday’s match at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center to carry on as a non-title fight.
Garcia weighed in at 143.2lbs in private on Friday morning, a staggering 3.2lbs above the division limit, in preparation for the public weigh-in later that day. The match will proceed after the parties reached a confidential financial agreement, redirecting some of Garcia’s purse to Haney. However, Garcia can no longer vie for Haney’s WBC title. If Haney loses, the belt will be left unclaimed.
The astounding moment that Ryan Garcia downed a beer on the scales.#HaneyGarcia pic.twitter.com/9oOhTgHr7J
— Boxing News+ (@BoxingNewsPlus) April 19, 2024
Garcia further contributed to the chaos at the public weigh-in, seemingly gulping down beer as he stepped onto the scale in the Barclays Center atrium, confirming his 143.2lbs weight. Haney weighed in at an exact 140lbs.
“I was enjoying a fantastic beer; it was incredible,” Garcia commented shortly after the boxers came together for a nerve-racking staredown. “I did my utmost to meet this weight. I put myself through torment.”
Haney responded, “He’s extremely unprofessional. I advised him yesterday that his antics would backfire, and this is just the beginning.”
The fiasco will do little to alleviate the ongoing concerns about Garcia’s mental stability. His erratic actions in person and on social platforms have almost entirely eclipsed the promotion. As the news spread that he hadn’t made the weight on Friday, the 25-year-old native of Orange County released a series of tweets implying that he never planned to meet the contracted limit, effectively confessing to unsportsmanlike behavior.
“I feel fantastic, and I have a 3 pound advantage,” Garcia posted. “Victors do what they must; I’m still sharp.”
Garcia’s struggle to meet the super lightweight limit first came to light ahead of his December victory over Oscar Duarte, which took place at 143lbs after it was initially contracted for 140lbs.
Haney, a 25-year-old from the Bay Area, undefeated in 31 professional matches, has needled Garcia throughout the lead-up to Saturday’s match, predicting that he wouldn’t make the limit. At Thursday’s final press conference, Haney challenged Garcia to pay him $500,000 per pound if he didn’t make the weight. Despite apparent protests from his father and trainer sitting beside him, Garcia accepted the bet.
Why would I force my self to make weight so I can be weak
Nah I’m here to win
That’s it
— RYAN GARCIA (@RyanGarcia) April 19, 2024
A Golden Boy Promotions statement on Friday morning declared that Garcia will “honor the handshake made at the final press conference yesterday.”
“We have a fight,” the statement read. Haney verified the $1.5m windfall, tweeting, “Ryan honored the 500k per pound.”
