A rematch between Devin Haney and Ryan Garcia has been confirmed, almost a year on from their controversial first meeting.
Garcia put on the performance of a lifetime against the former WBC super lightweight champion Haney, dropping the 26-year-old from San Francisco several times before picking up a majority decision win at the Barclays Center in New York.
The celebrations of ‘King Ry’ came to a drastic halt after it was revealed that he had tested positive for Ostarine, in a test that was taken in the lead-up to his showdown with Haney. The 26-year-old was served with a 1-year suspension as well as a fine of over $1 million in light of this revelation.
Turki Alalshikh has been the man behind the negotiations and confirmed that a deal for the rematch is ‘done’ with the two expected to run it back in October, but will be dependent on whether both Haney and Garcia can win their respective ‘warm up’ fights, which are reported to take place on the same card in May.
Speaking to The PorterWay Podcast, two-time welterweight world champion Shawn Porter backed ‘The Dream’ to bounce back and win the rematch, as he expects the 26-year-old to ‘right his wrongs’ against Garcia.
“And that’s what you do with rematches. You find everything you did wrong, you know it instantly after the fight’s over. You come back and you right your wrongs.
I do believe that it’s a rematch that he will win.”
Both fighters have set their sights on gaining redemption, as they look to settle a rivalry that has been submerged in controversy over the last 12 months.
