Tim Bradley says Devin Haney would have beaten Ryan Garcia if he had held his right hand up during their April 20 fight. Bradley notes that Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) held his hand and fought with emotion.
Tim felt that Haney should have boxed Ryan (24-1, 20 KOs), especially after he was dropped in the seventh. He then tried to jab with Garcia, which made it easier for him to continue landing his thunderous left hook.
Garcia dropped Haney three times in the fight, winning a 12-round majority decision at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The win permanently burst Haney’s bubble as the next Mayweather, putting his career on shaky ground.
It was known before the fight that he had a fragile chin, but after being hit repeatedly by Ryan’s whip-like left hook, it’s now clear that he can’t take a punch.
“All Devin had to do was hold the phone. He won most of the fight,” Tim Bradley said GHBTV about Devin Haney just needing to get his defensive mechanics right for him to beat Ryan Garcia last April.
Haney’s problems that led to him dropping weren’t entirely related to not keeping his right hand up. The real problem was some of the clinch he attempted, which put him in firing range of Ryan’s short left hook. He caught Haney with that punch trying to clinch.
“He was winning most of the exchanges in the fight,” Bradley said. “He was jabbing, he was moving, looking good, but he kept dropping that right hand. Ryan is extremely gifted shooting that left corner. He shoots it out of nowhere. It’s automatic for him. Obviously, Devin Haney didn’t practice for it. If he would have kept that backhand, he would have won the fight.”
Given how fast and powerful Ryan’s left hook was in that fight, Haney would have to do the impossible by stopping him from landing any punches. Haney could have followed Bradley’s recommendations to stay up, box and stay on the outside. It wouldn’t have worked unless he just poked and moved for 12 rounds.
I don’t think he could have because he put on so much weight after he hydrated. He looked like a super middleweight inside the ring. Haney wouldn’t be able to move as heavily as he did constantly.
“He boxed himself out in places where he wouldn’t be caught or knocked down. Devin was like, ‘I’m going to fight him’ rather than box him. He should have just boxed him. Keep his wits. Stay out of his emotions. I thought, ‘Why is this guy standing in front of this puncher? He has to move.’ He didn’t need to walk up to this guy. Use his legs and put him up,” Bradley said.
Haney had to fight because Ryan got to him so quickly, and he did an excellent jab to counter his power shots.
“Ryan didn’t have to taper down to those last three pounds, and I feel like that was the advantage he had over Haney in the fight. He was fully strong. He didn’t exhaust his body like Haney did,” Bradley said.
It wouldn’t have been a big deal if Haney had agreed to fight Ryan at 147 rather than 140 because he wouldn’t have to wear his body down to come down in weight. If weight was the reason Ryan won, Haney should have agreed to fight at welterweight. He would have been strong and made 147 and maybe he wouldn’t have fallen apart.
