If Oscar De La Hoya truly had his way, he would move Ryan Garcia in any direction other than a sequel to his last fight.
The Hall of Fame former six-division champ and head of Golden Boy Promotions is not keen on seeing Garcia, 24-2 (20 KOs), run it back with WBA 147lbs titlist Rolando Romero. A rematch between the pair of welterweights is reportedly in discussion, despite the lack of entertainment value from their May 2 meeting in New York City. won by Romero via unanimous decision.
De La Hoya – Garcia’s promoter, for better or worse – was emphatic in his response when asked if he liked the idea of the proposed repeat pairing.
“No, I actually don’t,” De La Hoya told DAZN Boxing’s Chris Mannix during Saturday’s show in Chicago, Illinois. “Because the first fight was a dull fight. When you’re a promoter and you’re trying to make rematches, it’s because people want to see it.”
Romero-Garcia was marred for its lack of action, aside from Romero flooring Garcia in the second round and the surprise of the upset itself. The two combined to throw just 490 punches on the night, the fourth fewest among any 12-round bout during Compubox’s 40-year history.
Romero, 17-2 (13 KOs), claimed the secondary WBA ‘World’ welterweight title that evening. The Las Vegas native was since upgraded to full titleholder after Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis vacated the WBA and IBF 147lbs titles to campaign at junior middleweight.
Regardless of the stakes, Romero was receptive to the idea of a rematch with Garcia along with any other proposed welterweight fight.
De La Hoya instead likes the idea of Garcia facing another fighter from that same May 2 show.
The Ring Magazine-presented event featured lineal and WBO 140lbs champion Teofimo Lopez, who defeated Arnold Barboza via unanimous decision. Lopez, 22-1 (13 KOs), delivered by far the most entertaining performance of the night and was the most vocal member of an otherwise dull buildup to the event.
“The first fight wasn’t that entertaining, the first fight wasn’t a big deal,” insisted De La Hoya. “So, I believe there are other opponents out there for Ryan. There are other big names out there, other big fights we can make with the likes of Teofimo and other fighters out there.
“First things first, I need Ryan to be in great health.”
