Devin Haney’s team has filed a formal lawsuit against Ryan Garcia in the wake of their controversial boxing match.
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Devin Haney lost the bout but is now suing Ryan Garcia for being roided up during their match.
Garcia defeated Haney this past April in a highly controversial bout that saw Garcia miss weight for the 140-pound contest—rendering him ineligible to win Haney’s WBC super lightweight title—and then have his win overturned when it was later announced that he tested positive for a banned substance.
Haney’s team subsequently wrote a letter to the New York State Athletic Commission calling for Garcia to be disqualified and are now taking legal recourse. On Friday, the boxer filed a lawsuit against Garcia alleging battery, fraud, and unjust enrichment from the April 20 contest, according to a report from Boxing Scene.
According to Haney’s attorney Pat English, there was specific language in the bout agreement signed by Garcia in which the boxer guaranteed he would not use performance-enhancing drugs. Garcia has become known for his troubling behavior in public and on social media, which necessitated extra precautions on the Haney side.
“At no time did Devin Haney consent to engage in a bout against a boxer who was positive for a performance-enhancing drug, performance enhancing-procedure or masking agent and would not have proceeded with the bout had he known,” English wrote in Friday’s filing, according to Boxing Scene. “The New York State Athletic Commission would not have permitted the bout had it known of the positive finding or of Garcia’s IV use.
We all know the UFC has a steroid and banned substance problem, but on top of that, they are disingenuous at best in trying to curb the problem. They hire testing agencies that they can control and manipulate, maybe most famously in the Jon Jones 'pulsing' farce. Could an individual fighter be successful in suing his/her opponent for being roided up? Could this be the answer to the steroid problem in the UFC?
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