Promoter Bob Arum feels optimistic that he’ll make a fight between Teofimo Lopez and Ryan Garcia for February. Ryan (23-1, 19 KOs) has a fight before then against Oscar Duarte on December 2nd, and it’s iffy whether he’ll come out victorious.
Teofimo vs. Ryan Garcia would be a business-level fight rather than a sporting one because Kingry has beaten nobody in the 140-lb division to earn a title shot against WBO light welterweight champion Teo.
If Ryan climbed the ranks like the other grunts by getting in the trenches and proving he deserves a title shot, you could understand him fighting for a belt against Teofimo.
The fight should be a sporting thing, not strictly for business purposes, thanks to Ryan’s popularity on social media with his 11 million Instagram followers.
Arum will need to give Ryan an offer he can’t refuse because he’s already being mentioned as the next opponent for Devin Haney if he’s victorious in his fight against WBC light welterweight champion Regis Prograis on December 2nd.
Many boxing fans aren’t eager to see Ryan thrown to the wolves by facing Teofimo (19-1, 13 KOs) in one fight removed from his seventh round knockout loss to Gervonta Davis last April. If Ryan were to earn the fight by beating some solid contenders at 140 to show that he’s back from that loss and is still fighting well
While Golden Boy Promotions didn’t match the 25-year-old Ryan Garcia against one of the killers from the 140-lb division, the guy that they picked is still better than anyone that he’s beaten before and has heavy hands.
Duarte (26-1, 21 KOs) is hungry and has a great opportunity to set himself up for some serious life-changing money by beating Ryan.
“We’re hoping to get that fight done sometime in February. In the meantime, [Ryan] Garcia has a fight [against Oscar Duarte on December 2nd], but I don’t think there’s going to be that much difficulty a Teofimo-Ryan fight together for the end of February,” said Top Rank boss Bob Arum to K.O. Artist Sports about his hopes to match WBO light welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez and Ryan Garcia.
If Ryan gets this fight, he will likely be knocked out within six rounds, and it will be difficult for him to rebuild his career. However, Ryan’s massive followers, many of them teenagers, won’t abandon him after the defeat, so he will still be a popular choice for champions.
With Ryan’s ability to market his fights to his 11 million followers, he can turn them into money-makers, even if he repeatedly loses and becomes a journeyman.
