Eddie Hearn believes he has the right solution for a problem he feels lightweight contender Ryan Garcia will have to face up to soon.
Hearn, the head of Matchroom Boxing, suggested in a recent interview that Garcia will have trouble landing “mega fights”, since most of the titlists and top contenders in the division are occupied for the next year or so. WBC titlist Devin Haney and WBA, WBO, and IBF titlist George Kambosos may fight against each other up to two consecutive times this year. Gervonta Davis, the hard-hitting commercial attraction from Baltimore, is scheduled to face Rolly Romero in May at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Vasiliy Lomachenko is currently tied up with military duties defending his homeland of Ukraine from Russia and when he does decide to return to the ring, he will likely face either Haney or Kambosos.
Garcia, who is promoted by Golden Boy, will have a tough time getting those fights, Hearn said.
“Well Ryan’s great for boxing, firstly,” Hearn said on The DAZN Boxing Show. “He’s a star, he looks tremendous, he’s exciting in the ring. He’s got that vulnerability as well, which fans love. How good is he? I don’t think we’re going to fight out against Tagoe…it’s a comeback fight for Ryan Garcia so we don’t have any problem with the opposition this time around.
“The difficulty is going to be moving forward now with Haney-Kambosos moving forward is what is the next move for Ryan Garcia. We know that Devin is going to have to rematch Kambosos in Australia, like, if he wins…but that’s Devin out of the picture this year. If Kambosos wins he’s going to fight Lomachenko. So really all the belts are tied up this year.”
In the meantime, Hearn has a proposal. Should Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs) come out victorious against Emmanuel Tagoe (32-1, 15 KOs), as he is expected to, this Saturday (April 9) at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Hearn would then like for Garcia to come over to the UK and face one of his capable charges, Maxi Hughes, the 32-year-old southpaw from Yorkshire, sometime by the end of summer. Hughes holds a lightweight belt by the IBO, which is not considered one of the four major sanctioning bodies. Hughes (25-5-2, 5 KOs) picked it up last September with a win over Jovanni Straffon in Leeds. The opportunity would give Garcia a chance to win a belt, however fringe it may be, and help expand his appeal in another country.
“I called [Golden Boy president] Eric Gomez the other day. I said, ‘Let’s bring Ryan Garcia to the UK.’ We’ve got this young fighter called Maxi Hughes who won his IBO title against Straffon, defended it against Ryan Walsh. I want to give this kid a big opportunity.
“Let’s do this big outdoor event in Yorkshire. Bring Ryan Garcia. It will be wild.”
Hearn expressed that it would be a shame if the 23-year-old Garcia, who spent nearly all of last year on the sidelines dealing with mental health issues, finds his career stalling once more because of an inability to land the major fights.
“For me, once he gets through with Tagoe you’ve got to keep him active,” Hearn said. “You’ve got to keep this young man in the gym, especially while you’re waiting for the mega fights to happen. You’ve got Gervonta Davis coming up fighting at the end of May so he’s not going to be ready ‘til September, October. Let’s get Ryan Garcia out by the end of summer. We’ve got a couple of guys for him. Maxie Hughes who I’d like to give the opportunity to.”
Asked if Garcia’s handlers were receptive to the idea of going to the UK, Hearn indicated that they were.
“They like that,” Hearn said. “Obviously, they want to get Tagoe out of the way. But Ryan Garcia is pushing for a mega fight. Everybody wants their mega fight, to get their money in the bank. But with Ryan Garcia, with the new trainer, I just feel like activity will be key.”