Ryan Garcia has opened the door to a rematch with super lightweight rival Devin Haney.
The 140lb stars met for the first time in April 2024 in a bout that has since been drowned in controversy, after Garcia failed a drugs test shortly after.
The 26-year-old from California put on the performance of a lifetime against Haney, which ended up being overshadowed after it was revealed he used the banned substance Ostarine in the build up to the highly anticipated contest.
After the results of the failed test were revealed, Garcia was subsequently banned from boxing. The former WBC ‘interim’ lightweight champion is free to resume his career in April.
Since the chaos that ensued following his battle with ‘King Ry’, Haney has been made ‘Champion In Recess’ by the WBC. The 26-year-old is has now confirmed that he will return to the ring in March although an opponent has yet to be announced, but the date rules out the Garcia rematch due to his ban.
March.. I’m back
— Devin Haney (@Realdevinhaney) January 4, 2025
After initially refusing to face Haney again, in an interview with Manouk Akopyan, Garcia appears to have had a change of heart and is now open to running it back, as long as it’s at a higher weight than before,
“Run it back the same way, just a little higher weight class.”
‘King Ry’ was due to return to the ring in an exhibition against Japanese kickboxer Rukiya Anpo at the end of December, although the contest had to be postponed due to Garcia sustaining a hand injury during training camp.
A return to professional boxing is yet to be confirmed for Garcia, but he is expected to return to the sport at some stage in 2025 as he aims to bounce back from the events that unfolded last year.
