During a press conference featuring Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney, allegations of drug use were brought up.
Devin Haney is set to challenge “The Flash” for the WBC super lightweight title on Saturday, April 20th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. In preparation for their upcoming match, both fighters gathered in Los Angeles for a press event to promote the fight.
During the press event, Garcia had difficulty speaking due to a sore throat. Haney then accused Garcia of using cocaine and advised him to refrain from it to preserve his voice. Garcia promptly refuted the accusations.
“I want to clarify a few things,” Garcia stated as Haney persisted with the allegations. “I don’t do cocaine. I’ll take a live drug test…I drink, I smoke weed, and so do most of this room. Finally, I’m real, I’m real.” Someone in the audience remarked, “This is who I am, I drink alcohol, I smoke cigarettes, what am I going to do?” Well, we all have imperfections, but we all grow as individuals.“
This marks the second time this week that Ryan Garcia has found himself at the center of attention.
During an appearance on Monday’s edition of MMA hour alongside Ariel Helwani, ‘King Ryan’ claimed he would ‘destroy’ UFC bantamweight world champion Sean O’Malley in the Octagon. This led to a heated exchange between the two fighters, culminating in “Sugar” stating he would defeat Garcia “within minutes.”
Garcia enters the title fight against Haney with a record of 24-1, with his only loss coming against Gervonta “Tank” Davis in April 2023. He bounced back with an eighth-round knockout of Oscar Duarte in December.
On the other hand, Haney boasts an undefeated professional boxing career record of 31-0, with 15 of his victories coming by knockout.
