Boxing
Devin Haney says he won't 'gain anything but Instagram followers' by fighting Ryan Garcia
One of the marquee fights that could be made is between rising stars Devin Haney and Ryan Garcia. Both are perceived to have the potential to be pillars in the sport for years to come. But one half of the equation doesn't look to be too keen on a possible matchup.
In an interview done earlier this week with The Athletic, Garcia said Haney "kind of bores" him and would rather fight Gervonta Davis if he can get by Luke Campbell on Dec. 5.
On a Wednesday conference call to promote his WBC lightweight title defense on Saturday against Yuriorkis Gamboa, Haney was asked for his thoughts on Garcia's comments. The 21-year-old says if Garcia doesn't want to face him, then that's his prerogative. He made it clear though if a bout does materialize, he won't have much to gain from it besides gaining a bigger social media presence as Garcia has over 7.5 million followers.
"No problem," Haney said on Garcia not wanting to face him. "That's okay. If he feels like that, then so be it. Ryan Garcia has Instagram followers. He doesn't have a belt. I really don't gain anything but Instagram followers fighting him. So that's fine. I'll move forward to the champions of the weight class."
The Garcia-Campbell bout winner would become the interim WBC titleholder and be obligated to face Haney if he gets by Gamboa. Haney's promoter Eddie Hearn chimed in and questioned Garcia's thought process in taking on Campbell.
"You listen to Ryan Garcia saying 'No, no' (to fighting Haney)," Hearn said. "Why, no? Why are you fighting Luke Campbell because the winner is (a) mandatory for Devin Haney? Why on earth are you fighting Luke Campbell to become the mandatory for Devin Haney if you don't want to fight Devin Haney?"
Before the 'what if' game begins on the Haney-Garcia clash, the former steps inside the ring for his debut against his toughest test to date. Gamboa (30-3, 18 KOs) is a former unified featherweight champion and a 2004 Olympic gold medalist. In his last time out, Gamboa gave Davis a stern test and fought on a torn Achilles tendon before losing via 12th-round stoppage.
"The Dream" knows people think Gamboa is going to be a cakewalk and is past his peak. He isn't viewing it that way and knows what he's up against.
"I think Gamboa is an excellent fighter," Haney said. "I think a lot of people are sleeping on him that forget he went in there and was Tank's (Gervonta Davis) toughest test. He put up a better fight than Leo Santa Cruz did. Everyone is praising Leo Santa Cruz. No disrespect to him. He did put up a good fight, but Gamboa put up a better fight with a torn Achilles. So you cannot go in there and think Gamboa is a slouch and someone who is washed up. He is someone who went in there and hurt (Davis) with a torn Achilles. I cannot sleep on him. He's going to come to fight."
