Ryan Garcia was on horseback as he approached the press conference for his upcoming fight with Devin Haney in Los Angeles.
On Thursday, the 25-year-old rode a white horse and wore an all-white outfit to match as he arrived at the Avalon Hollywood and Bardot for the second leg of their press tour. After dismounting from the horse, two men -who appeared to be his bodyguards- carried Garcia on their shoulders to the front of the venue.
On Wednesday, Garcia foreshadowed a show for the LA audience. The tweet came after the first press conference in Brooklyn, New York, where he sat on a throne on stage while trading verbal jabs with Haney.
‘If you thought NYC press conference was wild,’ Garcia wrote. ‘LA HAS NO IDEA!!’
Garcia’s efforts did not stop there either. On his way to the stage, Garcia followed an entourage of performers while walking out to Diddy’s ‘Missing You’. Garcia previously wore a t-shirt with a photo of Haney and the rapper in a swimming pool.
Ryan Garcia rode a horse to the press conference for his upcoming fight with Devin Haney
Garcia was also carried by two men on his way to Los Angeles’ Avalon Hollywood and Bardot
King Ryan has been under the spotlight for several reasons during the build-up to the fight – most of which relate to his social media activity.
While slated to fight Haney, Garcia campaigned for an MMA fight against UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley. He called out to UFC president Dana White to let him fight in the organization against the 135-lb champion. His efforts, however, have gone to no avail.
Garcia also announced his relationship with Australian influencer Mikaela Testa earlier this week. While doing so, he posted a 50-50 grid of their pictures but has since deleted it from his social media accounts.
‘Stop judging her is she perfect no. But are you? THOUGHT SO. I love her so stop hating,’ Garcia wrote about Teste. ‘Btw, I’m training her to fight and I’m willing to put her against whoever on @misfitsboxing and if you feel you can take her tag your self In it and I’ll set up a fight and you’ll walk away with a bag.
‘No less then 500,000$ and percentage of PPV if it makes sense.’
Garcia and Haney will fight for the WBC title on April 20 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY
Haney is undefeated in 31 professional fights while Garcia boasts a 24-1 professional record
While some fans accused Garcia of drug use, others are more worried about an apparent lack of focus on his upcoming fight.
‘I wanna clarify some things,’ Garcia said on Thursday. ‘I don’t do cocaine. I drink and I smoke weed, and so does the majority in this room.’
Haney currently holds the WBC Junior welterweight and WBA lightweight titles. He is also undefeated at 31-0, with his most recent wins coming against Regis Prograis, Vasily Lomachenko, and George Kambosos Jr.
On the other hand, Garcia is coming off a round 8 knockout win over Oscar Duarte in December. Although he has not fought the same caliber of fighters as Haney, Garcia holds a 24-1 record. His lone loss came in a TKO against Gervonta Davis in April 2023.
Haney will defend his WBC title against Garcia on April 20 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.