Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney could be closing in on upset losses on a joint May card in New York’s Times Square. Ryan (24-1, 20 KOs) takes on Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz, while Haynie (31-0, 15 KOs) takes on former WBC/WBO 140lb champion Jose Ramirez on the Turki Al-Sheikh card.
Layoff Impact
Ryan and Haney chose the wrong opponents to fight after a 13-month layoff. 2012 Olympian Jose Ramirez (29-2, 18 KOs) and former WBA Light Heavyweight Champion Pitbull Cruz are not the right opponents for either fighter to face after a year off. Those two would be a nightmare for Garcia and Devin, even if they were active.
If Kingry and Haney had good shot resistance and could handle a shot to the basket, facing Ramirez and Cruz wouldn’t be a big deal. That is not the case. Both are fragile fighters who are broken in battle.
Garcia-Cruz will fight in the 143 or 144 welterweight bracket, which is perfect for the powerful 5’4″ Cruz (26-3-1, 18 KOs). In Pitbull’s two fights at 140 against Jose ‘Rajo’ Valenzuela and Rolando ‘Roli’ Romero, he hit harder.
Rayo probably would have been knocked out if he hadn’t used his new Lomachenko-style movement to avoid constant pressure from Cruz. Kingry does not possess the same movement ability and will be forced to fight for three minutes each round at close range. If Ryan can’t hurt Pitbull, he’s going to be in trouble.
50-50 Fights
Turki gave fans two great 50-50 fights with his Garcia-Cruz and Haynie-Ramirez doubleheader in Times Square. If he’s okay with Ryan and Devin potentially losing their fights, this is great. Al-Sheikh is already planning Garcia-Hani for a rematch in October in Riyadh. That fight will be tainted if one or both of them lose their tune in May.
This is a better deal for the fans at the PPV than if these two were fed cans of tomatoes, as is the custom for high-profile rich fighters coming off extended layoffs.
Jose Ramirez lost a 10-round unanimous decision to highly ranked undefeated light heavyweight contender Arnold Barboza Jr. on Nov. 16. That fight was competitive.
If Barboza Jr. had been stationary, he wouldn’t have won because Ramirez ran over him when he was in the pocket. Devin doesn’t have the same dodging style as Barboza, nor does he possess his power. He won’t be able to do the same things he did to deal with Ramirez.