Ryan Garcia is just a few months away from making his long awaited return to the sport.
The 26-year-old from California is currently serving a suspension which was handed to him after he tested positive for Ostarine in the lead-up to his fight with former WBC super lightweight champion Devin Haney last April. Garcia put on a career best performance against ‘The Dream’, dropping him multiple times before being declared the winner, although it was eventually ruled a no-contest.
Garcia is now preparing to make his return to the ring, which is set to come against Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero in May. It was initially expected that ‘King Ry’ would go straight in to a rematch against Haney, but it appears both fighters are set to take interim fights in the meantime, with Haney set to face former unified WBC and WBO super lightweight champion Jose Ramirez on the same show in May.
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As reported by The Ring Magazine, the stakes have now been raised even higher for Garcia ahead of his return, with the WBA ‘regular’ world welterweight title set to be on the line in his showdown with Romero. The 26-year-old has never won any version of a world title, although he did hold the WBC ‘Interim’ lightweight title for a period of time during 2021.
A win for Garcia will secure him a rematch with his long-term rival Haney, who must also come through potential opponent Ramirez if he is to avenge the events of what occurred last April. Haney relinquished his WBC super lightweight title shortly after his bout with ‘King Ry’, with the WBC making him ‘Champion In Recess’. The 26-year-old from San Francisco has not fought since that controversial meeting with Garcia, which forced him to take a break from the sport for a number of personal reasons.
