WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman has detailed why the WBC expelled Ryan Garcia and how the organization ultimately reinstated him, placing both decisions on record.
Rather than framing Garcia’s situation as matchmaking, Sulaiman presented it as a governance case study: how the WBC balances disciplinary enforcement with a route back for a fighter who meets the conditions to return.
Early Relationship With The WBC
Sulaiman wrote that Garcia was around the WBC long before he became a headline figure, describing repeated visits to the Los Angeles office and an early fixation on the organization’s championship identity.
“He frequently visited the WBC office in Los Angeles. Even then, he claimed that his childhood dream was to conquer the Green and Gold Belt.”
Sulaiman added, “Ever since I met him, we hit it off from our very first encounter with a sincere friendship.”
The value in that history is not sentimentality. It is institutional memory. Sulaiman is placing Garcia inside the WBC’s system as a long-term participant, not a champion who arrived late and left quickly.
Crisis, Positive Test, And Expulsion
In the most sensitive part of his account, Sulaiman described a turbulent period that ended with the WBC taking action against Garcia.
“It was then that ‘King Ryan’ suffered his first severe mental health crisis and made the decision to retire from boxing, ending his brief reign.”
Sulaiman continued, “He won the fight spectacularly, only to be discovered testing positive for banned substances.”
“The WBC took the difficult decision to expel him.”
Sulaiman’s wording frames the expulsion as a formal enforcement action, tied directly to the crisis period and the banned-substance finding he chose to identify.
No further medical interpretation is needed, and none is offered beyond Sulaiman’s wording.
Reinstatement As Board Discretion
Sulaiman’s account then turns from discipline to process, describing continued contact and a route back that ultimately led to reinstatement.
“At all times, we stayed close to him, offering help and paths to rebuild his life.”
He added, “A year later, he proved he had defeated his demons, and the WBC gave him that second chance that every human being deserves.”
From a governance standpoint, Sulaiman frames reinstatement as discretionary and conditional, reinforcing that enforcement and reinstatement operate under defined internal criteria.
How Sulaiman Framed Garcia’s Current Standing
Sulaiman concluded with a statement about where he believes Garcia stands today within the WBC’s world-title picture.
“Ryan achieved glory and is today the undisputed WBC welterweight world champion.”
Whatever the debate around terminology in the wider sport, Sulaiman’s position is clear: the WBC recognizes Garcia as restored to its championship structure, and the Board is standing behind that decision.
In outlining the process publicly, Sulaiman has placed the WBC’s disciplinary and reinstatement framework out in the open.
About the Author
Phil Jay is the Editor-in-Chief of World Boxing News (WBN) and a veteran boxing reporter with 15+ years of experience. He has interviewed world champions, broken international exclusives, and reported ringside since 2010. Read full bio.