Garcia points to August date as Benn talks stall following Zuffa deal and unresolved terms
Ryan Garcia says he plans to fight in August as talks with Conor Benn appear to have stalled. The shift follows Benn’s move to Zuffa Boxing, leaving Garcia’s next opponent unclear.
Garcia was asked about Benn and gave a blunt response about the situation. He suggested the fight had run into problems behind the scenes and pointed to Benn’s recent move to Zuffa Boxing.
“They didn’t want it to happen,” Garcia said to the media when asked about Benn. “Like De La Hoya said, Conor Benn probably wasn’t going to work because he signed with Zuffa. We have to see, man.”
The situation with Conor Benn is complex now that he’s officially signed a multi-fight deal with Zuffa Boxing. If Dana White wants a “league” model, he’ll want to protect his assets.
“August. August,” said Ryan, about when he plans on fighting next. “It’s going to be August, guys.”
Ryan was on social media immediately after that fight, calling Benn “food.” Many analysts are calling Ryan’s sudden eagerness to fight Benn vulture behavior. He sees a vulnerable name with a huge UK following and wants to scavenge the win while Benn looks human.
“Devin Haney never wanted. He doesn’t want the rematch at all,” Garcia said.
In boxing, “he doesn’t want the fight” is often code for “the check isn’t big enough yet.” Ryan calling out Haney for “ducking” while they argue over a 50-50 split is classic A-side posturing.
Haney’s camp has been floating a September 5 date at Allegiant Stadium, but Ryan is standing firm on being the A-side. The purse split may hold this fight up.
With Benn being the WBC #1 mandatory and Ryan holding the WBC belt, the sanctioning body might actually force the issue, regardless of what the promoters are whispering to the media.
If Benn and Haney are truly out, here are the most likely names currently in the mix: Teofimo Lopez is the stratic choice. This is the name gaining the most steam for August. Ryan has publicly stated that Teofimo is his “most realistic option.”
Teofimo recently lost a lopsided decision to Shakur Stevenson and is looking for a massive payday to bounce back. Ryan wants to be the first of the “New Four Kings” to have shared the ring with all the others (Gervonta Davis, Haney, and Lopez). It’s a huge legacy and business move that bypasses the A-side bickering he’s having with Haney.
We can’t count out a rematch with Rolly Romero. Last May, Rolly pulled off a massive upset against Ryan in 2025 in Times Square. Now that Ryan is a world champion again, he might want to avenge that loss and unify belts or simply erase the weak link stigma attached to that defeat.
