An undefeated champion looked vulnerable for the first time in his life. Devin Haney wasn’t the same after the fateful night of April 20th when he suffered a humiliating defeat against Ryan Garcia. Never before has he suffered three knockdowns in a single night in his career. Garcia gave him a humbling and mass ridicule followed. Just when things were looking bleak for the former undisputed lightweight champion, a saving grace arrived – Garcia’s PED usage. Inevitably, Haney milked the situation to salvage his reputation which was sinking like the Titanic, but the damage was already done. To put things into perspective- having your previous promoter Eddie Hearn and Matchroom Boxing not place any bid for his upcoming mandatory title defense fight against Sandor Martin must have hurt.
Now, Haney is out to ruin Ryan Garcia for affecting him “financially” and “mentally”. Outside the ring, he has already threatened to take legal action against ‘KingRy’. But that’s not enough, as he plans to cause damage to the 25-year-old boxer inside the ring as well. In an interview with Ariel Helwani for The MMA Hour, Haney made his thirst for revenge crystal clear to the public at large.
Devin Haney is out for blood!
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Although Haney was initially reluctant to fight against Garcia when reports started trickling in about his PED usage, he has changed his mind. That defeat is hurting his bottom line, and the only way of course correction is that he redeems his loss. While speaking to Helwani, ‘The Dream’ said, “He going to pay in the ring and out the ring and that I mean in many different ways.”
Haney’s anger was palpable as he harped on his plan to take revenge against ‘KingRy’ for juicing up ahead of the fight. “The sh*t that he did I I want. I want to make him pay for the sh*t that he did.”
“When you sign the contract, he said he was gonna be clean going into the fight. Ain’t gonna be nothing in my system, ain’t gonna be nothing in his system. He didn’t hold up his bargain. He didn’t hold up on his side. I wanna get it back in blood inside the ring and outside the ring.” he added.
Seemingly, Haney just isn’t happy with Garcia’s one-year suspension. For him, it isn’t proportional to the damage it caused him in terms of financial and future fight prospects. All things considered, Haney’s next plan might baffle you!
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Is taking time off a wise decision?
Although the loss against Garcia has been turned into a “no contest”, there is still video footage of Haney being dominated by Garcia on fight night. You would think that Devin would be itching to get inside the ring to set the record straight. Wrong! instead, he wants to take a one-year break from boxing as he had “had all the belts already”. Furthermore, he seems to regret the fact that he fought an oversized Garcia who was 3.2 pounds over the 140-pound weight limit.
I’ll be back n one year.. I had all the belts already. From now on I’m fighting at whatever weight I choose no longer fighting n weight classes
— Devin Haney (@Realdevinhaney) June 20, 2024
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The pertinent question is: Will the boxing fans miss him while he enjoys his hiatus? Won’t a year out of the ring further erode his pull in the boxing game which is already on shaky grounds? Furthermore, what do you think will happen in the rematch between Devin Haney and Ryan Garcia? Let us know in the comment section below.