The body has decided to take action. As announced by its president this Friday, American boxer Ryan Garcia has been excluded from fights organized by the World Boxing Council (WBC) after racist remarks made on social networks.
“Exercising my authority as WBC President, I am banning Ryan Garcia from all activity within our organization,” Mauricio Sulaiman said in a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter). The WBC, one of the world’s leading boxing federations, made the decision after Garcia repeatedly uttered a racial slur during a live broadcast on X.
Exercising my authority as president of the WBC , I am hereby expelling Ryan Garcia from any activity with our organization. We reject any form of discrimination. I fear for Ryan well being as he has declined multiple attempts for our help with mental health and substance abuse pic.twitter.com/pCIOH2am7B
— Mauricio Sulaiman (@wbcmoro) July 4, 2024
The boxer also mocked George Floyd, the African-American man murdered by police in Minneapolis in 2020 and whose death sparked protests around the world. “We reject any form of discrimination,” the WBC president continued. “I fear for the well-being of Ryan, who has repeatedly refused our help in matters of mental health and addiction.”
Not the first controversy surrounding Garcia
Garcia, 25, was given a one-year doping ban after testing positive for the anabolic agent ostarine on the morning of April 19 and 20, the day of his victorious fight in New York against Devin Haney.
That day, he knocked Haney down three times to inflict his opponent’s first defeat, but he did not capture his WBC super-lightweight belt, as Garcia showed up to the fight too heavy for the category. A victory that was later taken away from him.
Last month, Garcia was also arrested on vandalism charges for causing approximately $15,000 worth of damage to a hotel in Beverly Hills, California.
