Boxer Ryan Garcia Won $12 Million Bet On Himself This Past Weekend

Did you know that boxers are able to legally bet on themselves?

If you did, you are one of the few, as the sports world is all but dumbfounded this past week after it was reported that boxer Ryan Garcia cashed in a $10 million profit after placing a moneyline wager on himself to defeat Devin Haney this past weekend for the WBC Light Welterweight Championship.  

HAVE YOURSELF A DAY, RYAN!

Garcia was an underdog going in against the undefeated Haney. In the days prior to the fight, he said that he placed a $2 million moneyline wager on himself that ultimately would pay out $12 million. The DAZN broadcasters mentioned this during the fight and Garcia confirmed it on his social media accounts afterwords. The new champion also said that his total pay day may come out to $50 million when his fight purse, pay-per-view buys, and sold out Barclays Center attendance numbers come in.

Anyone who has followed Garcia knows that he has quite an appreciation for betting.

Prior to last Friday's weigh-in, he bet Haney that he would come in at the 140lbs weight limit and if not, Garcia would pay $500,000 for each pound. That didn't work out so great; Garcia weighed in at 143.5lbs and had to give Haney a nice $1.5 million before Saturday's fight even happened!

ONLY SPORT THAT ALLOWS GAMBLING ON THEMSELVES

The larger question remains however - should boxers be able to bet on themselves? Seemingly, they are the only sport that allows the actual participants to do so. Any other professional sport specifically prohibits betting not only on one's team or game, but also the entire sport in general. For example, an NFL player can not bet on a football game, but can bet on baseball.

Garcia was allowed to place wagers on himself because boxing doesn't have an overarching commissioning body that dictates fight stipulations on a national level. Instead, everything is set up via the state athletic commissions and, in this instance, the Nevada State Athletic Commission and Nevada Gaming Control.   Neither body has any restrictions about a boxer betting on themselves to win. Fight contracts usually include language that forbids a boxer to bet on their opponent to win as well as not allowing any prop bets, something we learned from Floyd Mayweather a few years back.

Prior to Mayweather facing Conor McGregor in an amateur boxing match, Floyd tried placing $400,000 that he would win the fight in under 9.5 rounds at -200 odds. However, the M Resort refused to take the bet because fighters aren't allowed to place prop bets for fear that it would come across as the fight being rigged.

SHOULD BOXERS BE ABLE TO PLACE BETS?

Personally, I don't have an issue with betting on yourself. Hell, that's what it's all about in the end anyway, right?

That is, of course, if one has good intentions, which isn't always the case - just look at what Shohei Ohtani had to go through. 

Due to the sheer temptation of betting apps literally being on one's phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and massive advertising deals with the likes of DraftKings and FanDuel, it's not always easy to say "no." Just last week, Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter received a lifetime ban after betting on his own games. Former Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Calvin Ridley was suspended for the entire 2022-2023 season after getting caught gambling on football games as well.

But to allow BOXERS to bet is a bit of a bold move simply based on the sport's questionable reputation due to alleged fight fixing scandals throughout the 1980s and 1990s.

Opponents will argue that it's better to have fighters legally bet so that it's out there in the open rather than back door deals. That may sound noble enough to appease the sportsbooks, but let's be honest - if a fighter wants to find someone to bet prop bets for him or even bet on his opponent to win, he will. That's the problem with a 1 vs 1 sport compared to being a part of a team.  

Regardless, whether it was financial motivation or one of pride, Ryan Garcia came up big when it mattered most - especially in his bank account.

DO YOU THINK BOXERS SHOULD BE ABLE TO GAMBLE ON THEIR FIGHTS? EMAIL ME: MICHAEL.GUNZELMAN@OUTKICK.COM OR TWEET ME:  @TheGunzShow