HANEY CANNOT CHANGE REALITY
IN a decision that did not really come as a surprise, the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC) recently suspended American boxer Ryan Garcia for one year after he tested positive for a banned substance relative to his bout with fellow American Devin Haney.
It can be recalled that on April 20, Garcia hammered Haney in 12 rounds to win by decision in their highly anticipated duel in Brooklyn, New York.
Garcia knocked down the previously unbeaten Haney three times. Haney never regained this rhythm from the moment he got a sampling of Garcia's lethal left hook.
The fight was supposed to be for Haney's World Boxing Council (WBC) super lightweight championship (140 pounds), but Garcia showed up overweight in the fight, tipping the scale at around 143 pounds. Haney could have called off the bout, but it still pushed through after it was revealed that the fighters had earlier agreed that Garcia was going to pay Haney $500,000 per pound over the weight limit of 140.
Garcia reveled over the huge win, but the celebration was short-lived.On May 1, the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association disclosed that Garcia tested positive for ostarine, a performance-enhancing drug, the day before and the day of his fight with Haney.
On June 20, the NYSAC changed the result of the fight to a No Contest and restored Haney's unbeaten record of 31-0 with 15 knockouts. A No Contest or "NC" is a technical term used to describe a fight that ends for reasons outside the control of the boxers. In a No Contest, there is no winner or loser.
In addition to changing the result of the fight, the NYSAC, as aforestated, suspended Garcia for one year. Garcia cannot fight in New York until his suspension ends on April 20, 2025. The NYSAC was the one that ruled on the controversy because the fight took place in New York.
While the NYSAC's jurisdiction is limited to fights in New York, other boxing commissions in the United States are expected to honor the suspension. This means Garcia cannot fight in the United States until April 2025.
Haney, as of this writing, has been moving heaven and earth to make boxing fans forget about the "loss" he suffered in the hands of Garcia.
Believe it or not, Haney even tried to have the video of his fight with Garcia removed from YouTube.
Haney has become the butt of jokes these days. Truth be told, he only has himself to blame for the situation he is in.
When Garcia showed up overweight, Haney should have called off the bout.Haney, however, agreed to continue with the fight after taking money from Garcia for every excess pound.
Haney also thought that by showing up overweight, Garcia was in no shape to come up with a competitive performance. Weeks before the fight, Garcia also appeared to suffer from a mental breakdown as he posted some weird messages on social media.
Haney apparently thought Garcia was going to be easy picking owing to the latter's physical and mental "deterioration."
Lo and behold, Haney realized he was in a real fight when he wobbled upon getting hit by Garcia's left hook.
Haney wants boxing fans to believe that he is still undefeated and marketable, but nobody is buying it. The problem here is that videos of the Haney-Garcia fight are readily available on the internet for everyone to watch over and over again.
A boxer getting his unbeaten record restored after a loss is overturned is not new in pro boxing.
The great Mexican champ Julio Cesar Chavez, who went unbeaten in his first 89 fights, actually lost by disqualification to Miguel Ruiz in 1981.
Chavez, then 11-0, knocked out Ruiz after the bell ending the first round. For some reason, the result was changed to a knockout win for Chavez and latertotally deleted from his record, as if it did not happen.
There was no internet or YouTube back in the 1980s and nobody even remembers Chavez's fight with Ruiz.
In Haney's case, a fan only has to check out YouTube to watch the beating he absorbed in the hands of Garcia. The NYSAC may have changed the result, but the evidence is out there and the fans know what really happened.
The best thing Haney can do is fight Garcia again the moment the latter's suspension ends. Haney, though, has other plans and recently vacated the WBC super lightweight crown.
Haney cannot hide under the NYSAC's reversal ruling and contend that Garcia did not beat him. Haney must settle the score with Garcia inside the ring and not through a ruling from a boxing commission.
Then again, perhaps Haney does not really want to get another taste of Garcia's left hook.
2024-06-27T16:15:21Z dg43tfdfdgfd