sport news Inside Ryan Garcia's two-month public meltdown ahead of Saturday's fight with ... trends now
Typically, boxing promotion requires a string of public appearances, interviews, and maybe some light trash talk before stepping into the ring – just enough vitriol to give fight fans a taste of what's to come. But after Friday's Ryan Garcia-Devin Haney weigh-in, it's hard to say what ticket holders are walking into on Saturday in Brooklyn.
We do know it won't be a title fight. Garcia (24-1) arrived at the weigh-in three pounds over the 140-pound limit, which means Haney's WBC Super Lightweight crown won't be on the line at Barclays Center. And, since Garcia agreed to pay Haney $500,000 for every extra pound, he now supposedly owes his opponent a cool $1.5 million - that is, provided the wager was legitimate and not just schtick.
But to anyone who witnessed the weigh-in, that was the least of the problems as Garcia's two-month public meltdown moved off social media and into a real-life setting. A day earlier, he began a press conference by thanking Jesus eight times and ended it with threats of sexual violence: 'I put my d*** in your mouth b****!'
The two months leading up to fight week weren't any better. Demonic possession, UFOs, and Garcia's divorce from the mother of his newborn son are just some of the topics he's touched upon since early March, when he first set off alarm bells by claiming he was deceased with a slit throat.
One moment he's accusing an anonymous family member of sexual abuse, and the next he's flirting with a reporter, proposing to an Australian porn queen (she said yes!) or insisting that 'TUPAC IS ALIVE AND WELL,' as he wrote on X earlier this week.
A shirtless Garcia poses atop the Empire State Building. It's not clear why his pants are undone
Devin Haney speaks during a press conference at Barclays Center on April 18
Garcia thanked Jesus eight times on Thursday before he began threatening sexual violence
Even Haney, one of the world's best boxers at a perfect 31-0, is questioning Garcia's preparation for Saturday. In response to some bizarre antics from the challenger during a joint GQ interview, Haney turned to the camera and admitted: 'I don't know if Ryan Garcia is taking this fight seriously or not.'
By Thursday's press conference, where Garcia made a string sexual comments to attendees, Haney was more direct: 'There's something wrong with this motherf***er.'
It's a question facing promoters Eddie Hearn and Oscar De La Hoya, the latter of whom has insisted that Garcia – his fighter – is prepared for Saturday night.
Understandably, the rest of the boxing world remains unconvinced, and given Garcia's recent ejection from a Mets game and his homophobic comments on social media, there are calls for Saturday's bout to be abandoned.
YouTuber-turned-boxer KSI, for one, has called for the fight to be cancelled so Garcia can 'get some help..'
Meanwhile, Hearn has voiced concerns about Garcia's camp and its handling of the troubled boxer.
Devin Haney and Ryan Garcia face-off at The Empire State Building on April 16
Haney's father and trainer Bill (right) stands alongside Garcia's promoter Oscar De La Hoya
'I'm worried about the people that he has got around him, he's not even my responsibility, but what I have seen in the last few days and obviously what came last night, is erratic behavior and erratic behavior stems from something,' Hearn said in early March.
Hearn's cryptic remarks aside, Garcia has repeatedly denied drug use, saying that he is 'not on coke' and has 'never even thought to do drugs.' (Although he recently suggested a bout with the UFC's Jon Jones in another social media post, proposing that both fighters would be 'coked out')
But whether the issue is drugs or something else entirely, there are many ringing the alarm bells for Garcia, who is coming off a win over Oscar Duarte Jurado after being knocked out by Gervonta Davis one year ago.
Even his
