(Photo credit: Esther Lin/Showtime) By Dan Ambrose: Lucas Matthysse (34-3, 32 KO’s) is hoping that a win over John Molina (27-3, 22 KO’s) this Saturday night will lead him to a rematch against WBA/WBC light welterweight champion Danny Garcia, according to RingTV. Matthysse was beaten by Garcia in a clinch-filled fight last September on the Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez card. Matthysse had been doing well against Garcia despite his running and clinching, but once he caught an elbow in the right eye, it closed his eye and changed the complexity of the fight.

If Matthysse can’t get the rematch against Danny Garcia, he’ll stay at 140 or two or three more fights. Matthysse could face IBF light welterweight champion Lamont Peterson in a rematch or wait around to fight for the vacated WBA and WBC 140lb titles that Garcia vacates, as he plans on moving up to the 147lb division.

Matthysse must beat Molina tonight for him to keep his career moving forward. A loss to Molina, which is a possibility, would be a crushing blow to Matthysse’s career. Molina has the blueprint – low blows, constant movement, tons of clinching and frequent jabbing – created by Garcia to follow, and all he has to do is make sure he doesn’t swerve away from that when the two fighters face each other at the StubHub Center, in Carson, California, USA. Garcia used a lot of moment in the first half of the fight to stay out of the way of Matthysse. When Matthysse would get near him, Garcia would hold him to keep him from getting his shots off. Towards the end of the fight, Garcia increased his clinching and it was like watching Wladimir Klitschko fight.

It’s doubtful that Matthysse will get a rematch with Garcia, even thought it would be easily the best fight that Garcia can get for his next fight. Garcia doesn’t seem interested in fighting Matthysse again, as he’s said repeatedly that he wants to keep taking his career forward rather than backwards. Garcia still has unfinished business with Mauricio Herrera, who he beat by a controversial decision last month. Garcia doesn’t want to fight Herrera again, and it’s likely he won’t bother fighting Matthysse again either.

Matthysse’s best bet is to wait around until Garcia vacates his two titles and then go after them. Peterson probably won’t fight him again in a volunteer defense because he was beaten too easily by Matthysse in their fight in May of last year. Matthysse stopped him in the 3rd round.