Haney-Garcia

[robprosser]

Anyone else watch this? Quite a fun watch I thought though Garcia not bothering to make weight took the shine off a little.

[Ledhed1]

Even had Haney somehow pulled it out at the end, it had to be embarrassing he was being troubled by a guy who, perception is, has  a screw loose. Everything pointed to Haney here, and Garcia seemed ill-prepared. But like a mad scientist, it all came together when the lights came on. Garcia tried the same approach with Davis. Spurts of aggression to get his opponent on the back foot. But what Davis has - and Haney lacks - is finishing power. Haney banked a few rounds while Garcia was backing off, but Garcia kept coming and brought it when he needed it at the close.

Haney's been the king of the UD12's. It was puzzling his boxing skills couldn't short circuit Garcia's aggression, but he seemed to play into Garcia's hands by messing with the bull. Perhaps the method to Garcia's pre-fight madness. He may have taken Haney off his game before the first bell even sounded.

This result also reminds why we're so often denied fights like this. Haney had an image of invincibility - especially in this matchup - as an unbeaten fighter few opponents could barely touch. That reputation blew up in smoke in less than an hour. Although it's ultimately misguided, you can kinda see why managers/promoters don't want fights like this. Garcia's people didn't want the Davis fight. Crawford and Spence personally forced that fight. Promoters promote; that's what they do. The business model still says keep the asset marketable, i.e. unbeaten. Haney's now a damaged commodity.

The flipside is this result also shows you can lose like Garcia did to Davis and still get it back. Are promoters getting the message? The ice may be thawing - Davis-Garcia, Inoue-Fulton, Crawford-Spence and here come Fury-Usyk and Beterbiev-Bivol. A chunk of the audience may be gone irretrievably due to mismanagement, but what's left may be salvageable and built back up. Taking the risk with your unbeaten fighter is essential and, in the event of a setback, not the end of the world.

Yea missing weight was unprofessional - of course it was - but the difference in size and weight between the fighters wasn't unreasonable and Haney made an informed decision to enter the ring with eyes wide open. Davis made Garcia look like a little boy. Props to Garcia for bringing it in primetime at his second chance.

[robprosser]

Don't really know why Haney had such a big reputation. He lost  to Loma (really a big featherweight). While Garcia's weight loss means this should have a * next to it so should his defeat to Davis. He should never have  agreed to the 136 in limit when he'd clearly grown into light welter. It wasn't a big shock to see him succumb to a body shot.

[WelshDevilRob]

Only caught the highlights after. I subscribe to DAZN but wasn't going to pay extra for this card. Haney looked a battered mess by the end.

The antics beforehand by Garcia were strange and I'm not convinced that it's an act. But it was a fine win despite the weight issue.