WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios (29-2-2, 18 KOs) and Ryan Garcia (24-2, 20 KOs) are close to a deal for a fight in early 2026.
Mike Coppinger reports on X that contracts are being exchanged between Ryan’s promoters at Golden Boy and Barrios’ handlers at PBC for the fight.
Barrios is coming off a 12-round majority draw against 46-year-old Manny Pacquiao on July 19, 2025, in Las Vegas. The 30-year-old Barrios is the perfect champion for Ryan Garcia to capture a world title against.
Fans Question the Opportunity
Ryan, 27, is getting his second consecutive title shot at 147, and fans on social media are questioning why this is happening. He lost to Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero by a 12-round unanimous decision in a fight for the vacant WBA welterweight title on May 2, 2025, at Times Square in New York.
If Kingry fights the way he did against Rolly, he’s not going to dethrone Barrios, because he’s a warrior and he has respectable power. He’s not going to roll over for Ryan. We saw that in Marrios’ performances against Pacquiao and Yordenis Ugas.
Popularity Over Merit?
Garcia hasn’t fought since, and now he’s getting another world title shot. It helps that Ryan has 12 million Instagram followers and is arguably the most popular fighter in the 147-lb division. Given Ryan’s popularity, it’s understandable why he’s being given another quick title shot after his loss to Romero.
Golden Boy’s Strategic Move
Earlier on Saturday, Golden Boy promoter Oscar De La Hoya ruled out Ryan being used as the replacement opponent to face Jake Paul on November 14th in an exhibition match in Miami, Florida. Fans were excited last night about the possibility of Garcia being used as Jake’s opponent this month. That would have been an enormous payday for Ryan.
De La Hoya said in an interview with Fight Hub TV that Garcia is under contract with them and DAZN. Jake fights on Netflix. So, it wasn’t going to work. That would have been an enormous payday for Ryan.