Boxing

Ryan Garcia & Devin Haney Trade Words; Oscar De La Hoya & Bill Haney Separated At Final Press Conference

There's no love lost between Devin Haney and Ryan Garcia and their respective teams.

Nathaniel Marrero

Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney interact at the final press conference prior to their upcoming fights.
Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney interact at the final press conference prior to their upcoming fights. / Geoffrey Knott/Matchroom Boxing

You wouldn't think Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney aren't scheduled to face each on Friday at Times Square with how much they've gone back and forth in the build up to their fights.

Haney and Garcia continued their war of words on Wednesday at the final press conference. It even bled into their respective teams, as Garcia's promoter, Golden Boy Promotions' Oscar De La Hoya, had to be held back from Haney's father and trainer, Bill Haney, at one point.

"There's some lying, starting with Oscar De La Hoya first said that it's three headliners and they're all with Golden Boy,' Bill said as Teofimo Lopez was egging him on. "That doesn't make sense."

Garcia (24-1, 20 KOs) faces former WBA junior welterweight champion Rolando "Rolly" Romero (16-2, 13 KOs) in the main event, while Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) is fighting former unified junior welterweight champion Jose Ramirez (29-2, 18 KOs) in the co-main event. Lopez (21-1, 13 KOs, the WBO and Ring Magazine junior welterweight champion, will defend his titles against interim WBO junior welterweight champion Arnold Barboza Jr. (32-0, 11 KOs).

MORE: Watch The Full Times Square Card On DAZN

The rivalry between Garcia and Haney ratcheted up a few notches with the build-up to their fight on April 20, 2024. Garcia dropped Haney three times, but a decision victory was overturned to a no-contest after it was revealed that he failed multiple drug tests for ostarine and he was suspended for one year by the New York State Athletic Commission.

During open workouts on Tuesday, Bill got into it with Garcia and his father, Henry Garcia, and his brother, Sean Garcia. Bill has also claimed Garcia looks much smaller compared to his fight against Haney.

Still, Garcia hasn't been afraid to bring up how the fight vs. Haney played out, even though he failed multiple drug tests and missed weight by over three pounds.

"They were saying the same thing last time that they got their ass whooped and you're going to get your ass whooped again," Garcia said.

"That motherf***** don't even sound the same," Haney said. "He's off that ostarine. He don't even sound the same. Your physique changed. Those muscles (are) gone."

Bill chimed in, asking what had happened to Garcia, while Garcia was more than ready to fire back and showed a glimpse of the same person in the build-up to his fight vs. Haney last year.

"What the hell has happened to Ryan Garcia?" Bill said. "This is not the same Ryan Garcia."

"I got multiple personalities b****," Garcia said. "I got multiple personalities b**** and you don't want to see the crazy one. You and your son is some b******. You're the biggest b**** out of all of them."

Should Garcia and Haney win their respective fights on Friday, the plan is for them to meet in a rematch later in 2025. And if the build-up for a card they aren't fighting each other on is any indication, the lead-up to the rematch has the potential to far surpass the first bout.

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Nathaniel Marrero
NATHANIEL MARRERO

Nathaniel Marrero is a writer for the Boxing, Pittsburgh Pirates and Baltimore Ravens On SI sites. He's also written for the Orlando Sentinel and MLB.com, and was a part of UCF's sports show, Hitting The Field. He attended UCF and graduated with a bachelor's degree in journalism in 2023. Twitter/X: Nate_Marrero