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Jake Paul may be friends with Ryan Garcia, but even “Problem Child” is having a hard time believing the boxer’s recent failed drug test was a “setup.”

In case you missed it, Garcia popped earlier this week for a performance-enhancing drug dating back to his fight against Devin Haney last month. Garcia was a massive underdog in that fight as Haney is widely regarded as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the sport, but “King Ry” ended up shocking the world of boxing and delivered multiple knockdowns en route to a decision win.

Everything was looking up for the controversial and presumably unstable Garcia until a failed drug test was revealed earlier this week. Now the verdict is out as to whether or not Garcia cheated against Haney. The young boxing superstar claims he’s innocent and is being setup by Team Haney after his win, but some around the combat community aren’t buying it.

Even former UFC double champion Conor McGregor put his friendship with Garcia to the wayside to destroy the boxer with a recent social media post.

Paul, who has a good relationship with Garcia, recently jumped on a video call with the boxing superstar and grilled him about his failed drug test. Garcia remains adamant that his failed test was staged and that he’s been trying to rush along a secondary test to prove his innocence. Paul seems like he wants to believe Garcia, but told him it would be “f—ked up” if he really did cheat.

“If you did do it, that’s really f—ked up and I’m gonna be pissed off at you,” said Paul (shown in the above video player. “That’s f—ked up.”

What do you think? Who are you believing at this point?

Sound off!

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Stick with Mania for any new developments regarding Garcia’s drug test

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Flyweight talents Alexandre Pantoja vs. Steve Erceg will go to war TONIGHT (Sat., May 4, 2024) inside Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for UFC 301.

Pantoja is on the hunt for the second defense of his Flyweight crown, but he’s run into a problem: he’s defeated up most of the top contenders. Pantoja’s record versus the current Flyweight Top 10 is ridiculous, as he’s beaten most of them at some point and holds multiple wins over Brandon Moreno and Brandon Royval. Consequently, UFC was forced to look far down the rankings for a challenger, and the best option that came up was Erceg. The Australian still seems to be more of a prospect than bonafide contender, but at 3-0 in the Octagon, he’s getting a huge opportunity.

Let’s take a closer look at the betting odds and strategic keys for each athlete:

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Pantoja Vs. Erceg Betting Odds

• Alexandre Pantoja victory: -185
• Alexandre Pantoja via TKO/KO/DQ: +450
• Alexandre Pantoja via submission: +300
• Alexandre Pantoja via decision: +200
• Steve Erceg victory: +140
• Steve Erceg via TKO/KO/DQ: +400
• Steve Erceg via submission: +1200
• Steve Erceg via decision: +450
• Draw: +5000
• Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

How Pantoja Wins

Pantoja might be the best backpacker in the sport right now, and he pairs that asset with … a brick chin and penchant for throwing leather? It’s an odd combo, certainly, but Pantoja brawls his way into submissions and strong positions better than just about anyone else.

In this match up, Pantoja is probably eyeing Erceg’s competitive decision win over Alessandro Costa. In the second round specifically, Costa found a lot of success really bullying Erceg, forcing the Australian into uncomfortable positions and gaining top control as a result.

Pantoja can do the same. Both prongs of his attack — heavy punches and grappling offense — have to be respected by Erceg, which should open up lands and takedowns alike. Furthermore, Pantoja has the physicality to make Erceg’s life difficult, particularly on short-notice.

If Pantoja is at his mauling best, Erceg is in for a difficult evening.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

How Erceg Wins

Erceg is a well-rounded young talent. The 28-year-old challenger has won a majority of his fights via submission, but he’s also proven himself to have crisp boxing with good power in his shots.

Striking would appear to be his best chance at victory. Historically, Erceg puts together his combinations more cleanly than Pantoja, and he’s shown a good ability to manage distance too. He could still get clubbed by a big Pantoja swing, but that’s still a better risk to take than scrambling with the jiu-jitsu ace.

Pace is also going to play a major factor in any potential upset. Fatiguing is a huge liability in combat sports, particularly at Flyweight where fighters are expected to throw dozens of strikes per minute. Pantoja has been able to succeed anyway because he’s a gamer and can wrestle while gassed, but Erceg should be actively working to fatigue the champion. In short, that means the Australian’s volume should be higher than ever, and he should be aiming to cause attritional damage to the body and legs.

Photo by Buda Mendes/Zuffa LLC

Pantoja Vs. Erceg Prediction

It’s a strange match up but should be a good fight.

The knock against Pantoja is that he’s 34 years old and does slow down in the second half of five-round fights. Even so, he’s managed to win late rounds against cardio monsters like Moreno and Royval. Erceg has shown strong conditioning in the past, but he’s not one to push the pace quite like those two men, so it’s hard to see Pantoja crumbling in this match up after succeeding in the others.

Equally important is that Erceg hasn’t been given a full camp to prepare for Pantoja and his snake-like back takes. Pantoja always finds his way to the back at some point, and I find it unlikely that Erceg is able to escape with any kind of quickness — meaning Pantoja can manufacture rests when he needs them.

Erceg has a puncher’s chance, but that’s a bad bet at 125 pounds.

Prediction: Pantoja via submission (+300)

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MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 301 fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches at 6 p.m. ET, followed by the remaining undercard balance on ESPN2/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 301: “Pantoja vs. Erceg” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive events archive right here. For the updated and finalized UFC 301 fight card and ESPN+ lineup click here.

Two Mexican boxing superstars go head-to-head on Cinco de Mayo weekend!

Tonight (Sat. May 4, 2024), live from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, we’ve got the undisputed super middleweight championship on the line as champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 KO) takes on undefeated Jamie Munguia (43-0, 34 KO). This fight is the culmination of four world titles on the line tonight, starting at 8 p.m. ET.

The leadup to this fight hasn’t been very full of controversial moments, that is until “F***ing **ssy ***hole” promoter Oscar de la Hoya said a few things and Canelo went nuclear on him. De la Hoya now plans to sue for defamation, because of course he is. The fighters themselves have been mostly respectful towards each other, but there’s a decent chance that Alvarez channels this anger towards the DLH proxy in Munguia and looks to make a statement.

168 lbs. Canelo Alvarez vs. Jaime Munguia
147 lbs. Mario Barrios vs. Fabian Maidana
126 lbs. Brandon Figueroa vs. Jessie Magdaleno
147 lbs. Eimantas Stanionis vs. Gabriel Maestre

CANELO VS. MUNGUIA LIVE PLAY-BY-PLAY:

Canelo Alvarez vs. Jamie Munguia, undisputed super middleweight championship:

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Mario Barrios vs. Fabian Maidana, WBC interim welterweight championship:

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Brandon Figueroa vs. Jessie Magdaleno, WBC interim featherweight championship:

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Eimantas Stanionis vs. Gabriel Maestre, WBA “regular” welterweight championship:

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To check out the latest and greatest boxing news and notes be sure to hit up our archive here.

Canelo vs. Munguia odds: Undefeated Mexican sensation Jaime Munguía will try to turn the combat sports world on its head by upsetting super middleweight titleholder Saul “Canelo” Alvarez atop the DAZN boxing pay-per-view (PPV) card TONIGHT (Sat., May 4, 2024) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“It’s a great opportunity for me to make a name for myself and start a great legacy,” Munguia said on PBC Gloves Off. “Well, obviously not just any fighter gets here, in the position I’m in. Canelo is a good a fighter, he’s a very complete fighter and I think he’s dangerous for anyone — just like I’m dangerous for anyone.”

Dangerous enough to score a bookie-busting upset?

DraftKings has a laundry list of odds, specials, and prop bets for tonight’s “sweet science” showdown, with a selection of those betting lines listed below.

Moneyline
Canelo Alvarez: -525
Jaime Munguia: +380

Prop Bets
Canelo Alvarez by Decision or Technical Decision: -105
Canelo Alvarez by KO/TKO/DQ: +165
Draw: +2000
Jaime Munguia by Decision or Technical Decision: +700
Jaime Munguia by KO/TKO/DQ: +950

Specials
Either Fighter to be Knocked Down in Rounds 1-6: +190
Munguia to be Knocked Down in Rounds 1-3 or Rounds 10-12: +275
Munguia to be Knocked Down and Alvarez to Win By Decision: +320
Munguia to be Knocked Down 2+ Times: +450
Munguia to be Knocked Down in the 1st Minute of any Round: +450
Either Fighter to be Knocked Down in Rounds 1-3: +600
Alvarez to be Knocked Down in Rounds 1-3 or Rounds 10-12: +800
Munguia to be Knocked Down 2+ Times and Alvarez To Win By Decision: +1000
3 or more Knockdowns in the Fight: +1200
Munguia to be Knocked Down in Rounds 1-3 and Alvarez to Win in Rounds 4-6: +1400
Alvarez to be Knocked Down and Munguia to Win By Decision: +1400

For the entire Canelo vs. Munguia fight card and DAZN PPV lineup click here.

“This is an amazing moment and I’m really excited to show everyone what I can do,” Munguia said at the final press conference (watch it here). “Fighting on his undercard was one thing, but now I’m ready to step up to my moment. Outside the ring, Canelo has all my respect. But inside the ring, that respect goes out the window.”

For more boxing news and notes click here.