The fighters in this Friday’s tripleheader in New York City’s Times Square made their grand arrivals on Monday evening.

Topping off the DAZN pay-per-view is Ryan Garcia making his return from a yearlong suspension due to positive tests for the banned performance-enhancing drug ostarine. He is officially fighting at welterweight for the first time in his career and will take on former junior welterweight titleholder and past sparring partner Rolando “Rolly” Romero.

“I’m coming back with a bang,” Garcia, 24-1 (20 KOs), said at the event. “I’m not here to play no games. I can’t. I got a huge fight coming up next.”

That huge fight is presumably a rematch with Devin Haney. They first met in April 2024, a bout full of controversy before and after. An ugly buildup to the fight culminated with Garcia coming in 3.2 pounds overweight, and seemingly intentionally so. Garcia dropped Haney three times en route to a majority decision win, only to have that victory changed to a no-contest when Garcia’s positive drug tests rolled in.

Garcia is heavily favored against Romero, 16-2 (13 KOs), whose defeats came via stoppages to Gervonta “Tank” Davis at lightweight and Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz at junior welterweight.

But they have a shared history – Romero claims he gave Garcia trouble in their sparring sessions – and Garcia knows he can’t take his eye off the ball.

“I’ve got to take him as serious as if I’m fighting Devin, so we’re going to be prepared 100%,” Garcia said. “I’m still going to bring that speed, that power. It’s just what I do. I’m explosive and I’m hungry. I feel the adrenaline right now. Fight week, I’m feeling how I always feel – just focused and ready to kill.”

Garcia said the person he most wanted to fight was Haney’s father, Bill.

“Devin can get it as well again,” Garcia said. “I’m going to do the same thing, just like I did last time.”

Romero, meanwhile, called this opportunity “long, long overdue.” Prompted about the sparring sessions, Romero said he expects things to go his way once again.

“He got his ass beat. Twice. Three times a charm, right?” Romero said. 

For Haney, as with Garcia, this will be his first boxing match since April 2024.

“I’m happy to be back in the ring,” said Haney, 31-0 (15 KOs). “This is a dream come true. I’d like to bring fireworks on May 2. I’d like to show the world a new and improved Devin Haney from before. I had to go back to the drawing board and focus on the mistakes I was making and become a better version of myself.”

Talk of a hypothetical Garcia-Haney rematch has drowned out either of the individuals’ actual fights this coming weekend – but Haney has remained present.

“It all starts with May 2,” Haney said. “My main focus right now is Jose Ramirez. He’s a former two-time champion. I’d like to handicap him and just show him that I’m on a whole different level, and then we can get to the Ryan Garcia fight.”

Ramirez greeted the crowd with some light shadowboxing and lifted up his shirt to show his abs. (“I like that,” one broadcaster said, presumably meaning the show of toughness. Ribbed by their colleagues, they were then driven to specify that they were not attracted to Ramirez’s abs. Professionalism all around!)

“I see myself out there, May 2, stealing the show,” Ramirez said. “It’s time to show the world the best version of myself. I owe it to myself to move up in a bigger weight class. Those four pounds [Haney and Ramirez are fighting at a catchweight of 144lbs] is going to definitely do wonders for me that night. We’re ready.”

The fight with the closest odds on the main card pits lineal and WBO junior welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez against Arnold Barboza Jnr, who is on a hot streak with wins over Ramirez and Jack Catterrall. During an acrimonious face-off at the promotional event for this card in Los Angeles on March 10, Lopez slapped Barboza in the face.

Asked to explain why he did it, Lopez, who has repeatedly used the N-word in efforts to provoke Terence Crawford and Gervonta Davis into fighting him, claimed that, “I come respectful. My whole thing is I’m always gonna come respectful. But he crossed that boundary, and we just gotta lay it right there.”

Lopez also said he planned to “beat the breaks off this boy.” 

Barboza was more placid, happy to praise Lopez despite the slap. 

“I’m very excited to share the ring with him. He’s an awesome fighter, one of the top at 140. But I’m an awesome fighter too, so it’s gonna be fireworks.”