A rematch between Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney remains as one of the most in-demand contests in the sport of boxing, and esteemed boxing analyst Teddy Atlas has offered his thoughts on the fight.
‘King Ry’ got the better of Haney in an upset win back in April 2024 in a career-best triumph, only for that victory to then be taken away from him after he failed a drugs test during the aftermath, testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug Ostarine.
Since then, both Haney and Garcia have got their hands on world honours in the welterweight division, with Haney defeating Brian Norman for the WBO title and Garcia trumping Mario Barrios for the WBC marble – which he defended against Conor Benn on Saturday.
Speaking after Garcia’s latest demolition job on ‘The Fight with Teddy Atlas’, Atlas reflected on Haney’s display against Garcia, believing that he fought the wrong fight against his fellow Californian.
“He [Haney] is in a good place now, he is a good fighter, he is a sharpshooter when he boxes right. He didn’t box right against Garcia, he tried to go and get Ryan, that is not him, he is a guy that sets traps.
“He does what Garcia does tonight [against Benn], he sets traps, he is real accurate with his punches and he doesn’t waste anything. He is a consummate boxer, counter-puncher and he came out of character against Ryan – and he paid a price for it.”
Looking ahead to a future rematch between the pair, Atlas appreciated the way in which Haney has bounced back from that harrowing night against Garcia and admitted that a second meeting would make for ‘an interesting fight’.
“I like the way that Haney looks right now. Haney got himself through the mental cobwebs from the physical beating that he took [against Garcia], he got through it.”
“Now he is back to being Haney and Haney is a good fighter. I’m telling you, that would be an interesting fight.”
Whilst Haney is a champion fight fans are hoping ‘King Ry’ attempts to unify against, it seems as though WBA titleholder Teofimo Lopez could be the frontrunner to be Garcia’s next opponent.
