BoxingScene’s Midweek Mailbag: Devin Haney-Ryan Garcia lawsuit, Inoue-Akhmadaliev, Bruce Carrington, Oscar Collazo, Tony Yoka, Riyadh Season

In this week’s mailbag, we tackle your thoughts on Devin Haney’s lawsuit against Ryan Garcia regarding Garcia’s use of performance-enhancing drugs, plus the potential fight between undisputed junior featherweight champion Naoya Inoue and former unified titleholder Murodjon Akhmadaliev; featherweight prospect Bruce Carrington’s close win over Sulaiman Segawa; Oscar Collazo’s upcoming unification bout with fellow 105-pound titleholder Knockout CP Freshmart; whether Tony Yoka can compete at heavyweight; and Riyadh Season banning a BoxingScene.com staff writer.

Want to be featured in the mailbag? Comment or ask a question in the comments section below. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. We also may select readers’ comments from other BoxingScene stories.

DEVIN HANEY’S LAWSUIT TARNISHES AN ALREADY POOR REPUTATION 

The lawsuit is an attempt at a quick money grab settlement and to get Ryan Garcia to settle so they can say he is admitting guilt. The case is frivolous.

Considering Garcia has already received the punishment given by the commission of the sport, who found it was accidentally ingested, maybe Garcia should find some people who will swear under oath that Haney illegally rehydrates with IVs? That would be interesting.

Devin Haney is already seen as a joke in the sport. He is now imploding his career totally. He could have said, ‘Yeah it’s an unfortunate situation, but I plan on getting my revenge in the rematch and whipping Ryan.’ But instead he has been crying because he obviously can’t beat Garcia, millionth of a gram of Ostarine or not.

All of the smack talking and insane boasting out of the Haneys is blowing up in their faces. They were majorly disliked before. Now? Even former Haney fans are cringing at this.

-Theshotyoudontsee

David Greisman’s response: Athletes using performance-enhancing drugs in any sport is wrong. Athletics using performance-enhancing drugs in boxing, a sport where the intention is to hurt your opponent, is even worse. 

That opinion shouldn’t change just because you don’t like the opponent.

Haney receives a ton of criticism, some warranted and some unwarranted, both for his performances in the ring and for what he has said or done outside of it. As I wrote in June, when Garcia accepted his suspension from the New York State Athletic Commission:

“No, Garcia’s use of ostarine didn’t create the flaws in Haney’s defense or the weaknesses in Haney’s chin. But it’s rational to conclude that it helped Garcia be more able to take advantage of each. Garcia was better than he would’ve been had he made 140, and done so naturally. Would Garcia have won anyway that night? We’ll never know. The point is that athletes have a reason for using performance-enhancing drugs. And that reason is — get this — to enhance their performance.”

Contrary to your comment, the athletic commission never concluded that Garcia’s use of ostarine was accidental. Indeed, the commission had a case against Garcia that was ready to go forward, and it didn’t proceed only because Garcia chose to settle rather than fight the accusations.

Garcia’s one-year suspension and fine amount to greater punishment than some offenders have received in the United States, and it’s on par with other suspensions in America, but is still much less than athletes get in other sports or even that boxers have received in other countries. 

To me, one year is still not enough, especially in an era where plenty of boxers are regularly sitting on the sidelines for significant stretches of time. I’d like to see longer suspensions, the threat of which would hopefully deter more boxers from cheating. I’d also like to see strict liability, where fighters are held responsible for what is in their body unless contamination can be absolutely proven. Garcia did not prove that in this case, and it is also inaccurate to minimize the amount of ostarine that was in Garcia’s system and how that substance would have helped him train and cut weight.

But in lieu of stronger punishments from the athletic commission, I am also OK with civil remedies. Returning again to my thoughts from earlier in the year, well before Haney ever filed this lawsuit.

“When Deontay Wilder’s fight with Alexander Povetkin was canceled due to Povetkin’s use of banned substances, Wilder sued Povetkin and won. The circumstances with Haney and Garcia are very different, but it is understandable that Haney would consider such measures to further punish Garcia beyond what’s come from the NYSAC. Fighters cheat because they think they can beat the testing, and because they think the penalties will be light if they are indeed caught.”

In this case, we need to disentangle our thoughts on the defendant (Garcia) from our thoughts on the plaintiff (Haney). If it was your favorite fighter who lost to someone who was subsequently found to have used performance-enhancing drugs, I have a feeling your position would be very different.

NAOYA INOUE SHOULDN’T HAVE TO FACE AKHMADALIEV

Since when are champions required to fight the losers of the guys they already beat? It’s one thing if Murodjon Akhmadaliev was undefeated or had a belt. But he already lost it to Marlon Tapales. And Inoue knocked out Tapales to become champion. Every boxing ranking has Tapales over MJ. And Inoue has also got other mandatories like Sam Goodman. Stand in line and wait your turn.

Kieran Mulvaney’s response: I can’t disagree with you. As I mentioned in my piece (“Murodjon Akhmadaliev to Naoya Inoue: Fight me or step aside”), had Akhmadaliev taken care of business against Tapales, he wouldn’t be in this position.

I do understand where Akhmadaliev is coming from, however. He believes strongly that he did more than enough to deserve that win, and apparently the sanctioning body saw enough merit in his claim that it ordered an immediate rematch. Akhmadaliev allowed Tapales to swerve that rematch to get his own shot at Inoue, and now Akhmadaliev is that organization’s mandatory and has been for a year or so. He pulled out of preparing for other fights in anticipation of getting that mandatory shot, only for it not to come to fruition. So I get his frustration.

But yes, you’re right: He was at the front of the line. He failed to convince two judges that he had beaten Tapales. And now he isn’t at the front of the line anymore. Given Inoue’s readiness to take on all challengers, I doubt very much that The Monster is ducking him. Rather, as you said, he has numerous mandatories to think about, and he’s frankly entitled to take relative gimmes such as TJ Doheny periodically. But MJ is also entitled to bang the drum for a shot — as is any other challenger — and I suspect he’ll get it.

AND BRUCE CARRINGTON DEFINITELY ISN’T READY FOR INOUE

Sulaiman Segawa made Bruce Carrington really think, work hard, and reconsider his impetuous talks that he could beat Naoya Inoue right now. There’s a saying that goes something like this: “Calling out the devil isn’t the same thing like seeing him coming at you.”

-Boricua181

Lucas Ketelle’s response: Let’s talk about desire. The stuff that makes people chase money without working, fame by being told how great they are, and those little indulgences we all love because they make us feel good. Enter Bruce Carrington: He got a taste of all of that this past weekend, except it came with a side of reality — Sulaiman Segawa. 

See, it’s all fun and games in boxing until someone punches you in the face, and your opponent doesn’t fold. This is where we as people are a generation obsessed with “clout.” Call out the big names, get the followers, bask in the Instagram likes. Carrington, bless him, seemed above it all, but then he started calling for Naoya Inoue. 

Like… what? Did we really think Bruce was ready for “The Monster” yet? It was bold. Ambitious. Also a little delusional. But most fighters are.

Now, welcome to Act II: Humility. 

Carrington squeaked out a tough win, but now he will no longer be talked about as the next coming of Sugar Ray Robinson. He’s entered the “oh, now you’re just a normal prospect” phase of his career. It’s part of the natural evolution for any fighter, but it does make you wonder: How does this change his narrative? These are the fights that create forks in the road. Some guys take a hard shot and start questioning life decisions. Others? They get hungrier, stronger, and want to feel that pressure again.

Time’s a funny thing. It heals, sure, but it also exposes the truth. Segawa? Way better than anyone gave him credit for. Carrington? Yeah, he’s talented, but if he thinks he’s just going to stroll to undisputed featherweight champ without grinding it out first, well, life has a way of humbling you.

OSCAR COLLAZO CAN PROVE HIMSELF AGAINST KNOCKOUT CP FRESHMART

It’s time to see how good Oscar Collazo really is. A win over Knockout CP Freshmart will establish that (“Oscar Collazo-Knockout CP Freshmart prepared for strawweight unification Nov. 16”). Then if Collazo can win 10 more fights after that, we’ll know just how great of a champion he really is. It’s not an easy goal to obtain, but a goal that he can possibly obtain, because he appears to have exceptional fighting abilities.

-Boricua181

Jason Langendorf’s response: Collazo may have only 10 professional fights under his belt, but he is 10-0 and has already beaten four one-loss opponents and won six fights scheduled for 12 rounds against a variety of foes in a variety of fashions (four by knockout, two went the distance). 

I’m not sure that we need to hold our breath for another 10 fights to declare just how good he is, but the Knockout CP Freshmart fight is absolutely worth the price of admission and would give Collazo a win over two of the current titleholders in the division. The other is Melvin Jerusalem, who Collazo defeated last year for the WBO title. That win looks even better now that Jerusalem has upset Yudai Shigeoka for the WBC belt and outpointed undefeated Luis Castillo.

Quality can be a little difficult to measure at boxing’s lowest weight classes. At 27 years old, Collazo still has more to do in a relatively short time frame. But we certainly could be looking at an all-timer among the little guys.

TONY YOKA HAS HEART BUT TOO MANY RED FLAGS

Tony Yoka (“‘Brilliant technician’ Tony Yoka can still be a factor in the heavyweight division”) faced some names early in his career and blew through them: Jonathan Rice, David Allen, Alexander Dimitrenko, Johann Duhaupas, etc. it was in the Christian Hammer fight, however, where he showed me some red flags. He was clearly flustered by the Romanian’s rough tactics.

I thought Yoka was athletic and had some ability. He showed a lot of heart to stay upright in that Martin Bakole fight and go the distance. Martin really put a beating on him. There’s something lacking when Tony needs to bite down on his gum shield and show some nastiness. Rather than get spiteful in the ring, he seems to wilt. Perhaps that’s just a lack of the PEDs…

-PBR Streetgang

Tris Dixon’s response: Like you, I felt Yoka might have the goods. His win over Joe Joyce in the Olympics, however, was contentious and he never looked fully polished. I’d agree with the red flags, too. We weren’t privy to a lot of the chaos that was playing out behind the scenes with his old team, which I think has impacted him in many ways, but ultimately there are tried and tested methods, teams and promoters that can take you to the top, and it might have served him well to go to the USA, perhaps England, or even to Eye of the Tiger in Canada, to build from the start. 

I have no idea how he will get on from here on in, at the age of 33. But it sounds like Don Charles is energized working with him and Yoka won’t be short of sparring, working with Daniel Dubois in the same gym.

You’d hope he hasn’t reached his ceiling and might get closer to reaching his potential, and as has been written about plenty of times, this generation of heavyweights is nearer the end than the beginning, so there is room for some fresh blood to come in. 

It’s not over for Yoka, but he is facing an uphill task, and I’m sure he will be asking himself whether he really wants it enough. It could come down to that.

BOXINGSCENE WRITER BANNED BY RIYADH SEASON RESPONDS 

HE WROTE A FUCKING BOOK JUST TO SAY THAT TURKI HURT HIS FEELINGS

-BlackRobb.

Declan Warrington’s response: My feelings (“An inconvenient take on the night Anthony Joshua was stopped by Daniel Dubois”) were no more hurt then than they are by the above. I’ve written — I’d like to think objectively — about what I consider to be the negative influence of Saudi Arabia’s ambitions in boxing for months, and not only for BoxingScene. 

I was accredited to attend Tyson Fury-Oleksandr Usyk, which was a terrific fight, in May. And while I remained in Riyadh, I wrote about what I considered to be the positives and negatives surrounding what I observed out there. In other words, whether or not I’m accredited won’t motivate how I attempt to report on something. I’m very aware it won’t matter at all if I never attend or report on a fight again. What’s actually important is that the sport continues to get covered with a sense of integrity (which, refreshingly, applies to each of my colleagues at BoxingScene).

Want to be featured in the mailbag? Comment or ask a question in the comments section below. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. We also may select readers’ comments from other BoxingScene stories.