Explanation: Why Did Haney Remain Champion?

On the night of April 21st in New York, USA, there was a match between the WBC super lightweight champion Devin Haney (31-1, 15 KOs) and Ryan Garcia (25-1, 20 KOs). Ryan won by decision, but did not become the champion due to not meeting the weight category requirements. Despite the loss, Haney remained the champion, although many fans believed that the belt would be declared vacant.

Mykola Kovalchuk, President of WBC Ukraine, explained why Devin remained champion despite the loss.

"This is under section 4.14 of the WBC championship rules and regulations. It states that in the case of a weigh-in violation, including when one of the fighters does not make the weight limit, the WBC acts at its discretion. That is, a decision is made based on the violation to apply certain sanctions.

It's clear that canceling the fight would not be practical. There's a commercial component. There are promoters, broadcasters. There are boxers who prepared for the fight. There are fans expecting the PPV broadcast. The fight could have been canceled by contract. But only if Haney had insisted on it, since his opponent had a significant weight advantage—more than 1.5 kg.

If the organization had let this go, it could have set a precedent for further violations of these rules by other boxers. That is, one of the fighters could accept financial penalties for gaining an advantage, as Garcia did, but then gain an advantage in the fight.

Imagine this: Haney makes weight. It's hard for him. He feels bad. Meanwhile, Garcia doesn't worry. He feels great. It turns out that the fighters are in unequal conditions. Moreover, the champion, the holder of the belt, is at a disadvantage. In such a situation, leaving the belt at stake was completely unacceptable.

Immediately after the weigh-in results, the WBC announced that the belt would not be at stake in the fight. It was decided that the match would take place. It would be sanctioned since the opponent was not against it. But the world champion title would not be at stake," said Kovalchuk.