It’s been months since former interim WBC lightweight champion Ryan Garcia was suspended for a year because of his positive Ostarine test results during the Devin Haney fight in April earlier this year. However, it appears to be still haunting the Victorville native, as SNAC nutrition founder Victor Conte, who is a convicted felon, continues to talk about Garcia’s doping scandal.
‘King Ry’ was scheduled to fight Japanese kickboxer Rukiya Anpo on December 30th, but after suffering a wrist injury during training, the fight had to be pushed back to early 2025. Regardless, as the 37-year-old counts his days before officially being allowed to fight professionally, Conte seems to have struck again on social media.
Conte highlighted a study from ASCO Publications, which investigated the effects of ostarine, a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM), on lean body mass (LBM) and physical performance in healthy older adults as a precursor to its use in cancer cachexia. Questioning whether Ryan Garcia and others in boxing have read the study, Conte emphasized the benefits ostarine presents in people ingesting it.
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“The 1.4 lbs of Lean Body increase translated to an improvement in the stair climb test in both speed (+15.5% ± 12.9 faster time, p=0.006) and power (+25.5% ± 20.3 watts, p=0.005),” he wrote. “Does [it] seem that we should consider that a possible 15% increase in speed and 25% increase in power may help a boxer win a fight?”
“IMO the fact that Ryan did no random drug testing for ten months and then seemed to have an increase in both speed and power in his fight with @realdevinhaney is highly suspicious,” he added. “Ryan also decided not to provide any evidence at [the] NYSAC hearing also seems suspicious.”
Notably, Ryan Garcia denied the allegations of taking the banned substance on purpose, labeling the presence of Ostrine in his system on accidental ingestion from ashwagandha. Conte alleged, “A boxer could possibly take OSTARINE for several months and then taper off before entering a random testing period and test negative.”
It’s also worth noting that, NutraBio, which Garcia’s legal team had claimed was contaminated and caused the positive PED tests, has fired back on the claims, asserting Ostarine was never used in the manufacturing of their products. Regardless, Conte then raised several questions about Garcia’s actions.
“Why no random drug testing from Tank fight in April 2023 until Feb 20, 2024, when Ryan entered random testing with @realdevinhaney,” Conte asked. “Why did Ryan allow DAZN to film him doing illegal IV the week of the fight with Devin?… Why did Ryan decide to accept a year suspension and not present his case at [the] NYSAC hearing?”
“How did two separate supplements both test positive for the same prohibited substance? Did somebody from his own team possibly mix them together? What happened to all the lawsuits Ryan claimed he would file against @eddiehearn and others? Would Ryan consider enrolling in a 24/7/365 random drug testing program to show his fans that he has nothing to hide?”
While only Ryan Garcia can answer these questions, his lawyers had this to say about Garcia’s B-Sample testing positive.
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Ryan Garcia’s lawyers react to his positive doping test results
Ryan Garcia’s legal team issued a statement addressing his positive test for the banned substance ostarine following his April 20 fight against Devin Haney back in May after Garcia’s B-Sample also tested positive for Ostarine. They maintain that Garcia is committed to “clean and fair competition” and assert that he “has never intentionally used any banned substance.”
via Getty LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JULY 16: Ryan Garcia celebrates his victory by KO (0:27 of round 6) in the Super Light weight fight against Javier Fortuna at Crypto.com Arena on July 16, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Tom Hogan/Golden Boy Promotions via Getty Images)
To support their claim, Garcia voluntarily provided a hair sample for analysis by toxicology expert Dr. Pascal Kintz, which returned negative results. His team argues this proves he did not ingest ostarine over time, consistent with contamination. “All of these factors, combined with his ultra-low levels from samples taken on April 19th and 20th [in the billionth of a gram range], point to Ryan being a victim of supplement contamination,” the statement read.
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That being said, it appears Ryan Garcia has some questions he needs to answer, as Victor Conte highlighted. However, whether he even acknowledges the allegations is yet to be seen. What do you think about Conte’s questions?
Doping Controversy Continues to Haunt Suspended Boxer Ryan Garcia as SNAC Nutrition Founder Raises Several Questions
