Ryan Garcia banned for one year, victory against Devin Haney null and void after positive PED test

The surreal sequence of events that began with Ryan Garcia’s career-defining victory over Devin Haney has resulted in a suspension of at least a year for the erratic boxer, according to veteran reporter Dan Rafael.

Garcia’s agreement with the New York State Athletic Commission will reportedly also require him to defeat Haney, making the fight officially void. He will be forced to forfeit his $1.1 million contract money and pay a $10,000 fine, the state’s maximum penalty.

Garcia confirmed the annulment of his victory soon after via social media, reiterating his announcement from Wednesday that he was reportedly retired.

He then hinted that a move to the UFC was in the works and urged UFC President Dana White to get to work.

Garcia’s team later released a statement calling him a “victim of substance contamination” and saying “fans will always remember his performance against Devin Haney as a masterpiece.”

Haney, meanwhile, welcomed the news, which will make him undefeated again with a record of 31-0 (1).

Garcia tested positive for Ostarine, which is listed as an anabolic steroid by WADA, after beating Haney by majority decision in April, and soon after his B sample test also came back positive. That development clouded a victory that could have catapulted Garcia into true boxing stardom with three knockdowns of the WBC lightweight champion.

That victory already came with a caveat, as Garcia entered the fight more than three pounds overweight, costing him $1.5 million for an ill-advised bet with Haney the day before and a shot at Haney’s WBC title belt.

With a ban clearly looming, Garcia’s camp pointed out that two supplements the boxer had reported to doping authorities had tested positive for ostarine contaminants, suggesting Garcia had not knowingly taken the substance. The lack of a track record and a clean hair sample bolstered that argument.

According to documents obtained by ESPN, the supplements are NutraBio SuperCarb raspberry lemonade flavor (which tested positive for ostarine at 70-2,200 picograms per gram of powder) and Body Health’s strawberry-flavored amino acid blend (660 to 830 picograms).

Garcia’s legal team told ESPN that they believed only a four-month suspension was warranted, but the NYSAC apparently disagreed.

Ryan Garcia claimed he was retiring amid a bizarre series of incidents

While the matter of Garcia’s positive tests is closed, it is only part of an incredibly turbulent year for a boxer who can be unstable even at the best of times.

Since the beginning of 2024, Garcia has been …

With that in mind, Garcia posted another rant on social media on Wednesday, declaring, “I’m officially retired” and “Forget everyone that I exist.”

Given everything that has happened to Garcia over the last six months, it’s hard to take this retirement announcement seriously, but it’s also hard to ignore. It’s absolutely a mystery when Garcia will fight next, and not just because of his suspension.