-
Mike Coppinger, ESPN
Star boxer Ryan Garcia on Friday wants the New York State Athletic Commission to submit to a mental health evaluation ahead of his WBC junior welterweight title fight against Devin Haney on April 20 in Brooklyn. he said.
In a video posted to social media that has since been deleted, Garcia (25-1, 20 KOs) said he was informed by the committee of a request for evaluation over his posts on social media.
“Isn't it a constitutional right in the United States to have free speech?” Garcia said in the video. “So just because I'm tweeting what I'm tweeting, does that mean that's a prerequisite for a mental evaluation? That's interesting.”
Over the past few weeks, Garcia has made a series of eyebrow-raising posts on social media, ranging from conspiracy theories to claims that he has evidence of extraterrestrial life.
Matthew Delario, the commission's boxing director, declined to comment.
Golden Boy Promotions spokesperson Stephen Friedman said: “As with all Golden Boy fights, we are in close contact with the committees and sanctioning bodies and of course we are confident that our fighters will be ready on fight night. “We will follow all the rules and regulations to make sure that there are.” he told ESPN.
Golden Boy founder and Hall of Fame boxer Oscar De La Hoya is Garcia's promoter.
WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman said Friday that he was “in direct discussions with the New York committee” regarding Garcia.
Garcia suffered his first professional loss last April, when he was stopped in the seventh round by Gervonta Davis. This superfight had over 1 million pay-per-view purchases, an unprecedented feat for a boxing event.
Garcia bounced back with an eighth-round knockout win over Oscar Duarte in December. The fight was Garcia's first match against trainer Derrick James. Garcia is in training camp with James in Dallas ahead of Haney's 140-pound title challenge.
The 25-year-old Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) is the No. 1 junior welterweight boxer on ESPN and the No. 6 pound-for-pound boxer. In December, he won the WBC title with a shutout decision over Regis Prograis.
Garcia is ESPN's No. 8 boxer at 140 pounds. He has over 10 million followers on Instagram and is aiming for his first world title against Haney.
In the summer of 2021, Garcia withdrew from his fight with Javier Fortuna due to “health management” reasons.
