Ryan Garcia 42-1 (20) has given conflicting accounts on why he missed weight for his fight against WBC junior welterweight champion Devin Haney 31-0 (15) at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday night.
The polarising figure from Los Angeles hit the scales and came in at 143.2-pounds, a whopping 3.2-pounds heavier than the contracted limit. San Francisco’s Haney, 25, came in bang on the 140-pound limit.
A day earlier at the final pre-fight press conference Haney confronted Garcia about his and challenged him to a $500,000 bet that he would come in heavy. The 25-year-old Garcia boldly proclaimed he would come in under the limit and if he didn’t, he would pay $500,000 per pound that he missed weight by.
Garcia’s promoter Golden Boy issued a statement saying that Garcia would pay the financial penalty.
“Ryan has weighed-in over his contractual weight,” the statement read. “He will honour the handshake made at the final press conference yesterday. We have a fight.”
Asked at the scales about his inability to make weight, Garcia presented a contrite front.
“I did my best to make this weight. I put myself through hell,” said Garcia, who will be ineligible to claim the WBC if he wins for his failure to make weight.
His comments drew boos of derision from the crowd.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Suck my dick. I’m the best fighter here. Everybody’s gonna be cheering – watch,” Garcia responded.
“I give him $1.5 million but that’s nothing for me.
“I gave you your money. You better give me my fucking money. You want that centre of the ring? Let’s fucking do it. That’s not funny business. We got a fight tomorrow, man. Come on!”
It was a different story on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
“Why would I force myself to make weight so I can be weak?” Garcia posted. “Nah, I’m here to win. That’s it.
“I feel great and I got a three-pound advantage. Winners do what they have to do. I’m still sharp. Belts don’t feed your family.
“My balls got too heavy. And back gained too much muscle from carrying the promo. And my fingers got stronger from all the tweets, damn.”
Haney, whose odds on winning by knockout have shortened considerably since the weigh-in drama, remained poised and focused on the task at hand.
“This is all a dream come true,” he said. “I dreamed of these moments, and the moment is finally here. Now it’s my time to shine.
“He’s very unprofessional. I’m a true professional. I told him yesterday his antics will betray him, and this is the start. Tomorrow you’ll all see.”
The last word goes to Hall of Fame broadcaster Al Bernstein, who summed up the situation perfectly on X.
“Well, Ryan Garcia is three pounds heavier than he was supposed to be, but his wallet is $1.5 million lighter,” he posted.
