UFC icon Israel Adesanya was one of the many experts in combat sports who backed Devin Haney to beat Ryan Garcia in their grudge fight last night.
Garcia and Haney competed in one of the biggest fights of the year at the Barclays Center in New York City, with almost every major expert and fan picking the latter to win. But against all odds the California native managed to drop his rival three times en route to a massive victory.
The event was a massive night for bettors, with Garcia landing as wide as 5/1 with bookies at certain points in the build-up. And it’s likely that the upset will have been a big earner for those who gambled on a surprising outcome.
Ryan Garcia stuns fans as he drops Devin Haney three times in upset victory
Over 15,000 boxing fans packed into the famed New York arena to witness a statement performance from the divisive Garcia. He had already faced Haney six times as an amateur, with the pair going 3-3 before turning over to the paid ranks.
Two of their fights are not even recorded on BoxRec, but there will be no doubt about what happened in their rubber match. Garcia wobbled Haney within the first minute, and after a difficult six rounds dropped his rival in the seventh.
From there, Haney remained on top, even though he remained on wobbly legs. Garcia had a point taken, but later landed two more knockdowns in order to leave New York City with one of the biggest underdog wins in modern boxing history.
Israel Adesanya plotting UFC comeback after losing middleweight title
Adesanya is currently taking a break from fighting after years of intensive three-fight-a-year schedules. He was most recently defeated by Sean Strickland at UFC 293 back in September of last year, and teased a year out of the sport.
However, it is heavily rumoured that he will return to challenge Dricus Du Plessis for his middleweight title at UFC 305 in Australia this August. His coach Eugene Bareman believes that his ‘hiatus’ is finished, telling Combat TV: “He’s back training, so he’s back in the swing of things.
“We’re training just in case there’s an eventuality of a fight. We’re getting him fit. He’s getting ready to take up a potential date should someone come up. He’s basically finished his little hiatus and he’s ready to come back.”
Israel Adesanya loses $20,000 betting on Devin Haney to beat Ryan Garcia
The former middleweight champion may end up needing the money with his octagon return if he keeps spending big bucks during his time away. He joined a number of celebrities with egg on their faces as Garcia defied the massive odds to get the win.
Adesanya shared a photo of his bet, which showed that not only was he backing Haney to win – but to do it by knockout. He added a photo of the pair with the caption: “Shoot the dice”. Fans immediately took to the comments to mock him, with one writing that “Bro been taking L after L”.
Ryan Garcia has since joked that he deserves a cut of any gambler’s earnings on him winning, tweeting: “Everyone I made rich tonight bruh J need my cut wtf.” He finished the tweet by adding the he was just kidding and implored fans to enjoy.
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