1) Assume nothing
This being boxing, we should know by now not to claim to be experts, but still it is humbling, and somehow surprising, when we realise all we thought we knew before a fight turns out to be wrong.
2) Weight matters
It may have only been three pounds, but the difference between Garcia and Haney at the pre-fight weigh-in was more about the expenditure of energy than anything else. In coming in overweight, Garcia seemingly avoided the weight cut endured by Haney and this difference may have proved key on the night.
3) One special punch
While Haney is a man known to do his best work behind a steady, reliable and controlling left jab, with Garcia you have a man who is able to change the momentum of a fight in an instant with a single left hook. This x-factor was the difference between them on Saturday night.
4) Knockdowns matter
So often we have seen a fight decided by knockdowns, particularly if a few of them have been scored in a distance fight, and Saturday was no exception. Each time Garcia dropped Haney the fight turned in his favour and the scorecards would be fixed to reflect this.
5) Underestimate an opponent at your peril
Despite telling the world that Garcia was hamming up his self-destruction, Haney still would have been influenced by his opponent’s antics and the feeling that this fight would be easy work for him. Even if just on a subconscious level, he would have entered Saturday’s fight believing it was a foregone conclusion.
6) And still…
Although Haney lost against Garcia in Brooklyn, he will remain the WBC super-welterweight belt-holder on account of the fact Garcia failed to make the required 140-pound weight to fight. That’s a small victory, and a hollow one, yet it does at least give Haney some leverage going forward.
7) Welterweights?
Based on Garcia’s reluctance or inability to make 140 pounds (the super-lightweight limit), as well as Haney’s inability to take the big shots Garcia was throwing at him, there’s every chance not one but both boxers could see their future at welterweight, the division seven pounds north.
8) Do it again
It was an intriguing fight beforehand, one made all the more intriguing by Garcia’s behaviour, but that’s not to say it was can’t-miss or considered particularly competitive on paper. Now, however, thanks to the ease with which Garcia hurt Haney, an immediate rematch between the pair will not only be far more lucrative but probably the right move to make.
9) Bill Haney was wrong
Bill Haney, Devin’s father, wasn’t just wrong in terms of predicting this fight and describing the way it would play out. He was also wrong, completely wrong, to suggest beforehand that he was sending his son out to “kill” Ryan Garcia.
10) Ryan Garcia was right
His behaviour was, at times, both disturbing and repugnant, but Ryan Garcia ultimately achieved his mission: unsettling Devin Haney and leaving him confused, then humbled. To say it was all planned, mind you, is likely giving Garcia far too much credit.
