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Ryan Garcia believes he will be fighting for the undisputed 135 lbs gold by the end of this year. Fresh off a win over Emmanuel Tagoe, ‘KingRy’ has hinted at accepting a tune-up fight before targeting all the lightweight belts. He has even cited June 16th as his next fight date.
Meanwhile, WBC Lightweight Champion Devin Haney and WBO, WBA, and IBF titlist George Kambosos Jr. will battle each other for all the straps. Garcia is targeting the winner of that fight.
The 23-year-old was in New York at Taylor vs. Serrano. After witnessing the epic battle, Ryan Garcia spoke with iFL TV and offered a straight response when asked if he wanted to face the winner of Kambosos vs. Haney:
“There it is, yeah, that's what I want.”
Garcia was willing to face WBA (Regular) Lightweight Champion Gervonta Davis a year back, after his win over Luke Campbell. However, a lot has changed since then in the division. The current scenario doesn’t cite an immediate title shot for’KingRy’.
Garcia has since floated a potential clash against Isaac Cruz but that fight is still far from confirmed. So, the hunt for his next opponent continues with many A-listers like Joseph Diaz being possible opponents.
Ryan Garcia needs to fight his lightweight opponents
Garcia seemed right on track to demand a world title shot last year before he marched towards a potential exhibition against Manny Pacquiao. ‘KingRy’ showed a lot of enthusiasm about doing it. To his sadness, the bout never took place and Pacquiao retired after losing against Yordenis Ugas in August 2021.
Garcia was rumored to face ‘JoJo’ Diaz and ‘Pitbull’ Cruz, but he walked out of both fights due to injury and mental health concerns. Following a brief lay-off, his return fight against Emmanuel Tagoe wasn't very remarkable as the knockout artist failed to score a stoppage.
His prime focus should now be regaining the dominant factor that placed him in a top position in the division.
