As far as the record books are concerned, Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney, on April 20, 2024, never happened.
It doesn’t appear we’ll be so lucky when it comes to Garcia-Haney II.
And just like that, I suppose I’ve given away how I feel about this rematch. I’m well aware, however, that not everyone views it as I do. For some, this is a hotly anticipated, must-see fight. And those folks are probably in luck, as Haney and Garcia will fight separate opponents in May (possibly outdoors in Times Square), and then all signs point toward them renewing hostilities directly in Saudi Arabia in October.
There are plenty of reasons why Garcia and Haney are running their first fight back. There are just as many reasons why they shouldn’t.
Garcia-Haney II is happening because money makes the world go ’round. The Saudi government’s money is presently the driving force in keeping the boxing world spinning, and that money is declaring loudly that it wants Garcia-Haney II to take place. It’s as simple as that sometimes. The most immediate route to significant padding of bank accounts for both Team Garcia and Team Haney is to go down this road that leads to them facing each other again.
But Garcia-Haney II shouldn’t be happening, because – let’s be blunt – Garcia gained multiple unfair advantages that could have, and perhaps did, seriously injure Haney. What exactly was intentional among the acquired unfair advantages? About that, I can only speculate. But it is factual that Garcia came in 3.2 pounds over the 140-pound limit and made a financial payment in exchange for Haney facing an opponent outside of his weight class, and it is factual that Garcia submitted a total of three positive tests for the banned PED ostarine. Haney was knocked down three times (and visibly hurt several additional times) by the punches of his bigger, boosted opponent, and on a moral and ethical level, he should absolutely refuse to give another opportunity to the man who put his life in peril in that manner.
But Garcia-Haney II is happening, because everyone deserves a second chance. Yes, Garcia engaged in rule manipulation last April. (I’m not calling it “cheating,” because I don’t need to be the reason this website gets sued, but if you want to call it “cheating,” you have my blessing.) I believe in rehabilitation. I believe in people not always being who they appear to be at their worst moments. Garcia should not be written off forever as an irredeemable heel based on a single bad stretch of heel behavior.
But Garcia-Haney II shouldn’t be happening, because Garcia, the person, has bigger things to worry about than boxing. Simply put: His mental health should come first, and he has done nothing to demonstrate his mental health is sound. Last year, it very obviously was not. In addition to all of his alarming, seemingly manic behavior leading up to the fight, through the post-fight interview, and on to his assorted conflicting claims that followed about the drugs in his system, he also, in the months that followed, was arrested for trashing a hotel room and got in hot water for saying deeply offensive things about various races and religions. I have no idea whether Garcia has, over the last six months or so, received the help he needs. I hope he has. Because if he’s in the same headspace he was in last year, the people around him are doing him a disservice by plowing forward with his boxing career.
But Garcia-Haney II is happening, because there is a fine line between spinning out and spinning promotional gold, and plenty of fight fans felt, and feel, that Garcia was on the right side of that line. There’s a lot to debate when it comes to whether Garcia’s behavior helped sell the first fight and whether it will help sell a rematch. There were never definitive pay-per-view numbers released for the first fight. Oscar De La Hoya at one point claimed “a little over 300,000,” whereas Garcia said it did between 400,000-500,000. Dan Rafael wrote that he didn’t have a confirmed number but was hearing between 350,000-400,000. So let’s just average it all out and say it was around 400K. That’s a lousy number compared to the 1.2 million buys reported for Garcia’s fight with Gervonta “Tank” Davis, but a strong number compared to the reported 150,000 buys generated by Haney’s bout with Vasiliy Lomachenko. Clearly, Haney is no Davis, in terms of star power. But maybe Garcia’s brand was damaged by his KO loss to Davis, and maybe his acting out in the spring of 2024 hurt sales more than it helped. We’ll never know. But this much is clear: Turki Alalshikh believes the public wants Garcia-Haney II. He believes controversy sells.
But Garcia-Haney II shouldn’t be happening, because, good lord, how disgusting is it to look at a man who may be mentally unstable and who bent and broke rules to enhance the physical beating he put on another man … and see dollar signs? I am far from convinced the rematch will sell well. For every boxing fan attracted to the circus and the “unfinished business” and the allegations of cheating, I believe there is at least one corresponding boxing fan who has seen all they want to see of Ryan Garcia. There are assorted variables we can’t know yet – what the PPV price point will be, how Haney and Garcia will perform in their interim fights, what will be on the hypothetical October undercard to make it appeal more broadly to fight fans – but in a vacuum, there’s every chance Garcia-Haney II generates about the same amount of money as Garcia-Haney I did. (For what it’s worth, the closest point of comparison I could think of: Antonio Margarito-Miguel Cotto I in 2008 sold about 450,000 PPVs, and their rematch in 2011 sold about 600,000.)
But Garcia-Haney II is happening, because, well, the first fight was damned entertaining, and typically when a fight is thrilling and competitive, you run it back. Officially, it is in the record books as a no-contest due to Garcia’s failed drug tests. There is no loss on Haney’s record; he’s still undefeated. There is no win on Garcia’s record. But on the night of the fight, Garcia was declared the winner by majority decision, his three brutal knockdowns making up for the one point he was deducted for hitting on the break and for Haney outboxing and outworking him in many of the rounds in which Haney wasn’t peeling himself off the mat. Garcia-Haney I was action-packed and loaded with drama and probably would have gotten serious Fight of the Year consideration if not for it ultimately being ruled a no-contest.
But Garcia-Haney II shouldn’t be happening, because Haney is again accepting an uneven playing field by rematching at Garcia’s preferred weight. Yes, in theory, the commitment to using VADA testing should neutralize one manner in which “King Ry” tilted the canvas last April. But that’s only half the battle. The word is the fight will be contracted for 147 pounds. Haney is a junior welterweight. Garcia, one presumes, can’t get back down to 140. At a catchweight of, say, 142 or 143 pounds, this would feel like a fair compromise. At 147, it’s Haney giving Garcia permission to come into the ring on fight night an undrained, fully hydrated super middleweight. And no, size and strength are not the sole reasons Haney (temporarily) lost the first fight; his disastrous inability to avoid Garcia’s left hook is entirely on him and his trainers. Still, 147 pounds? What has Garcia done to deserve such concessions, besides being a much bigger name with the much larger fan base?
But Garcia-Haney II is happening, because boxing is at least as much a business as it is a sport, and if there’s more money to be made fighting Garcia than suing Garcia, then Haney’s lawsuit gets dropped and the contracts get signed.
But Garcia-Haney II shouldn’t be happening, because it requires Devin Haney to completely sell out, to compromise his integrity and possibly his health in exchange for increased financial security. Look, he’s a grown man. These choices are his to make. Maybe Haney will get the last laugh – a victory, sweet revenge, and many millions of dollars to boot. But I wish he had other, better options that didn’t involve rewarding Garcia’s behavior with money and opportunity.
I wish Garcia’s mental health and Haney’s physical health were higher priorities to all involved.
I wish that ethical considerations would prevail over financial considerations for a change.
I wish that Haney and Garcia were following up their no-contest with no contest.
Eric Raskin is a veteran boxing journalist with more than 25 years of experience covering the sport for such outlets as BoxingScene, ESPN, Grantland, Playboy, and The Ring (where he served as managing editor for seven years). He also co-hosted The HBO Boxing Podcast, Showtime Boxing with Raskin & Mulvaney, The Interim Champion Boxing Podcast with Raskin & Mulvaney, and Ring Theory. He has won three first-place writing awards from the BWAA, for his work with The Ring, Grantland, and HBO. Outside boxing, he is the senior editor of and the author of 2014’s . He can be reached on , , or , or via email at RaskinBoxing@yahoo.com.