Ryan Garcia maintains his belief that Devin Haney is a tougher challenge than Gervonta Davis, despite the contrasting outcomes of his previous encounters with them.<\/p>\n
The American was entering his first world title shot against \u2018Tank\u2019 in 2023, having claimed an earlier seventh-round finish over Olympic gold medallist Luke Campbell.<\/p>\n
Besides that, though, it could hardly be said that Garcia had proven his world-class credentials, let alone developed the requisite skillset to defeat a fighter of Davis\u2019 calibre.<\/p>\n
As a result, he suffered a devastating seventh-round stoppage defeat<\/a> after enduring a sickening body shot that rendered him unwilling to climb off the canvas.<\/p>\n Garcia therefore moved up from 135lbs and, after stopping Oscar Duarte in eight rounds<\/a>, he landed a world title opportunity against Haney in 2024.<\/p>\n At the time, Haney was set to defend his WBC super-lightweight strap, only for Garcia to exceed the 140lb limit by over 3lbs.<\/p>\n \u2018King Ry\u2019 then edged a majority decision after flooring his former amateur rival three times, only for two doping test failures to render his victory a no-contest.<\/p>\n