“Allahu Akbar!” Bernard Hopkins continues beef with Bill Haney before the announcement of the fight result

Bernard Hopkins was seen yelling a religious phrase toward Bill Haney before the Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney fight's results were announced.

“Allahu Akbar!” Bernard Hopkins continues beef with Bill Haney before the announcement of the fight result

Bernard Hopkins, Ryan Garcia and Oscar De La Hoya (image credit- DAZN, X)

The fight between Devin Haney and Ryan Garcia was a culmination of years-long rivalry. Their professional fight was the seventh time they entered the ring together after losing and winning three fights each in their amateur. Hence, their rivalry was an integral part of the fight’s buildup. However, this fight did not just showcase their rivalry as Bill Haney and Bernard Hopkins also continued their ongoing beef.

The two influential figures in the boxing world have not been able to see eye-to-eye with each other for several years. In addition, their relationship is so sour that they almost had a physical altercation when they came across each other. Since Bill and Hopkins had to be in the same space for this fight, their rivalry continued, and before the announcement of the result, Hopkins tried to mock Haney:

Allahu Akbar
Bearnard Hopkins after the Devin Haney vs. Ryan Garcia fight
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The boxing legend yelled out this phrase, which means ‘God is Great’ in Urdu. Furthermore, he yelled this while standing a few feet away from Bill inside the ring before the winner was announced.

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It should be noted that Bernard Hopkins is also a Muslim, but he still condescendingly directed the phrase toward Haney. If there was any question about why he did it, it was wiped away when he followed up the insult by blocking Henry Garcia from shaking hands with Bill.

Bernard Hopkins speaks about Ryan Garcia’s pre-fight tactics

Garcia’s antics were the biggest highlight of the fight against Haney. Many people believed that he was going through a hard time in his life because of his mental health or alleged drug use. However, while Garcia called his antics acting, Hopkins compared them to the tactics of war.

Bernard Hopkins , Ryan Garcia, and Oscar De La Hoya, Devin Haney and Bill Haney
Bernard Hopkins, Ryan Garcia, and Oscar De La Hoya (image credit- DAZN)

‘Art of War’ is a famous book that was written by the ancient Chinese general and strategist Sun Tzu. The book explores several aspects of war and the attunement of one’s mentality while at war. Hence, even though it was written a long time ago, it still resonated with the way humans think. As such, the legendary boxer compared Garcia’s antics to the tactics in the book.

Hopkins remarked on how the book mentioned that you should appear strong to your opponents if you are weak. Simultaneously, it also states that an individual should appear weak if he is strong. As such, Hopkins believed that Ryan Garcia was employing the same tactic ahead of the fight.

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