Ryan Garcia came in at 143.2 pounds on Friday, exceeding the 140-pound limit for his showdown against Devin Haney, as per sources close to ESPN.
Reportedly, Garcia opted against attempting to shed the extra weight promptly and instead sought to strike a deal to proceed with the fight, scheduled for Saturday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Sources indicate that Garcia (24-1, 20 KOs) will relinquish over $600,000 from his purse to Haney, with a signed agreement sealing the arrangement. However, he won’t undergo the customary weigh-in on Saturday due to missing weight.
Additionally, Garcia, aged 25, will not be in contention for Haney’s WBC junior welterweight title. In the event of Haney’s defeat, where he stands as a -900 favorite according to ESPN BET, the title will become vacant.
During Thursday’s news conference and in the lead-up to the bout, Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) had predicted Garcia’s failure to meet the weight requirement. This came after Garcia’s December victory over Oscar Duarte, initially slated at 140 pounds, took place at 143 pounds.
Haney had proposed a penalty of $500,000 per pound for Garcia’s potential weight miss, a demand that the latter’s camp has agreed to, as stated in a Golden Boy Promotions release.
This bout marks Haney’s second venture at 140 pounds, following his move up from lightweight in December, where he triumphed over Regis Prograis to secure the title.
Despite the anticipation surrounding the match between two prominent stars of the sport, Garcia’s social media activity, rife with conspiracy theories, has taken center stage, raising doubts about his commitment to training under Derrick James in Dallas for this encounter.
“People have a hard time wrapping that around their head that a post takes 10 seconds,” Garcia told ESPN last week. “… I never really recorded the videos. People are recording me. I just press post. I mean, people are kind of hilarious. They expect me to train 24/7, 365, but that’s impossible. I mean, it’s not impossible, but I definitely won’t do it. It’s just a balance, man.”
