You might assume fighters wouldn’t bite the hand that feeds them. But history suggests otherwise. Shakur Stevenson did it. Teofimo Lopez did it. And now, Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero has joined that list. The target is the man widely credited with revitalizing boxing in recent years, His Excellency Turki Alalshikh. Romero’s frustration appears rooted in his most recent appearance on a Ring Magazine card earlier this year.

After scoring a shocking victory over Ryan Garcia in May at the iconic Times Square in New York, the WBA super lightweight champion waited more than six months before airing his grievances towards the event organized by Alalshikh. When he finally did, he held nothing back. During a recent Instagram Live session, the 30-year-old openly vented about how he believes he was treated during the event.

Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero was expected to fail

Romero alleged that he wasn’t provided with a hotel room and that no money from his purse was placed in escrow. “They didn’t have a f—king hotel room for me, they f—ked up my gloves. I didn’t care,” Romero said in the video. Despite those issues, he claimed he kept his composure and chose not to raise concerns at the time. Now, however, he’s no longer willing to stay quiet.

“I kept it cool,” Rolando Romero added during his rant. “They didn’t put [any] damn money in escrow or [anything]!” The Las Vegas native went on to share his theory about why he was treated that way. According to Romero, the assumption was that he would lose, clearing the path for Ryan Garcia to move straight into a rematch with Devin Haney. 

Top Stories

MVP Chief Issues Injury Update on Jake Paul After Sparring Incident Ahead of Anthony Joshua Fight

Fact Check: Is Boxing Legend Thomas ‘Tommy Hitman’ Hearns Missing?

Meet Christy Martin’s Wife Lisa Holewyne – Is She Also a Boxer? All About the Boxing Legend’s Personal Life

Badou Jack vs. Norair Mikaeljan Stats & Prediction: Record, Age, Weight, Height, Reach, Rankings, and Knockout Ratio

Jake Paul–Anthony Joshua Fight Questioned After Former WBC Champ Drops ‘Scripted’ Bombshell

“They all had a f—king plan & look at this s—t… I destroyed everything they f—king had,” he added. Rolando Romero may have disrupted those immediate plans, but he didn’t derail them entirely. Despite losing to Romero, the Victorville native has inexplicably been granted a title shot against WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios. 

Barrios is, of course, coming off a controversial majority decision draw against Manny Pacquiao earlier this year. Meanwhile, Haney defeated former WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr. to capture the belt. The revised roadmap is straightforward: if Garcia defeats Barrios on February 21 in Las Vegas, a Haney-Garcia unification rematch becomes highly likely. 

Not to mention, the bout feels so inevitable that experts have already begun offering their predictions for it.

Former world champion shares prediction for Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney

The rivalry between Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney continues to simmer, and a potential rematch remains one of boxing’s most talked-about possibilities. With Haney’s latest win, former world champion Shawn Porter weighed in on how a second fight between the two could unfold. Before offering his prediction, Porter revisited their controversial April 2024 bout.

Garcia’s majority decision win was erased from the record after the Victorville native tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. While acknowledging the official outcome, Porter believes the events of that night are impossible to ignore. “We’re not going to be able to erase that loss the way it was erased [from] your record,” he said. 

“We saw what happened, we saw the struggles. We know what part of those struggles were. But, like I always say, you’re there to get hit. [Haney] had a great fight in between those knockdowns, but he had too many moments.” Despite that, Porter remains confident in Haney’s ability to adjust.

“I’m on record saying Devin beats Ryan in a rematch. I’m probably the only one [who] said Devin beats Ryan in a rematch.”

Having said that, Rolando Romero now appears to have joined the likes of Shakur Stevenson and Teofimo Lopez in rebelling against His Excellency Turki Alalshikh. However, both Stevenson and Lopez ultimately issued public apologies to Alalshikh—raising the question of whether Romero will eventually follow suit.