One of the most controversial moments in boxing in 2024 was when Ryan Garcia tested positive for Ostarine (which is an anabolic agent that’s a banned substance in the sport) the day before and the night of his upset victory against Devin Haney last May.
These tests were conducted by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA), which is the primary drug testing agency for boxing and the UFC right now.
Victor Conte, who is one of the people who created VADA, is notorious within the sports world for his role in the BALCO steroids scandal that implicated baseball sluggers like Barry Bonds for taking performance-enhancing drugs that Conte was giving to them in the early 2000s.
Conte has a long-standing relationship with Haney, as he has worked with Conte in the fields of blood work analysis and nutrition for professional athletes. This was discussed in a July 20 episode of The PorterWay Podcast, where Brian Norman Jr. (who Haney is slated to fight later this year) openly speculates on the nature of this relationship.
“Victor Conte with the VADA stuff, right? Devin Haney with the Victor Conte, right? Is there any other testing organization we can somehow get into, because I don’t know if I can trust them. That’s how I feel about it,” Norman Jr. said.
Journalist Sean Zittell then responded to Norman Jr. by saying that Conte once told him that he knows how to beat the VADA tests.
Brian Norman Jr say Bill still tryna find a way out the fight… & that he don’t trust VADA cuz of Victor Conte’s relationship wit them & team Haney
& Sean Zittel reveals that Victor told him he knows how to make drugs that pass the VADA test… GET THAT MF OUTTA BOXING‼️ pic.twitter.com/1UiVcoqThH
— Locked in daily (@GhettoLock) July 21, 2025
A clip of this interaction went viral on X, which caught the attention of Garcia on July 21, as he wrote, “Wowwww this is a disgrace to boxing, how the fuck is it okay to trust a testing site when the man that is the face of it can pass its own tests. I’ve been saying this since I tested fake dirty.
“It’s also really strange you must use Vada. Very very fishy”.
Wowwww this is a disgrace to boxing, how the fuck is it okay to trust a testing site when the man that is the face of it can pass its own tests. I’ve been saying this since I tested fake dirty.
It’s also really strange you must use Vada. Very very fishy https://t.co/r6PXc7CzFp
— RYAN GARCIA (@RyanGarcia) July 21, 2025
It’s easy to see why both Garcia and Norman Jr. would be suspicious about Haney’s connections to Conte.
The Latest Boxing News
Shawn Porter Rips Judges For ‘Incompetence’ In Manny Pacquiao Draw
Manny Pacquiao’s Son Reveals Reason He Wants Father To Retire After Mario Barrios Draw
Claressa Shields Completes Laila Ali Callout With $15 Million Check
Oleksandr Usyk’s Purse vs Daniel Dubois Will Make Tyson Fury Furious