DISCIPLINE AT LAST: HOW RYAN GARCIA CONQUERED THE SCALES AHEAD OF BARRIOS TITLE CLASH
Ryan Garcia clears the WBC 7-day weight check at 149.4 lbs! Get the full report on his Las Vegas title fight against Mario Barrios.
Ryan Garcia made sure to check every box before his big title shot. He didn’t just play by the rules; he stayed well under the safety weight limit at his seven-day check-in ahead of his fight with WBC welterweight champ Mario Barrios.
Both guys sent in video proof of their weight on Saturday, exactly a week before their February 21 DAZN main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Barrios came in at 150.6 pounds, easily under the 152-pound cap (that’s 3 per cent over the 147-pound limit). Garcia was even lighter, hitting 149.4 on the scale that evening.
WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman posted both results on social media right after they came in.
If you look back a bit, Garcia was almost five pounds lighter this time compared to his 14-day check-in, where he weighed 154. 2. The catch? He missed that earlier deadline by more than three days and got slapped with a $5,000 fine. The WBC warned that another slip-up would go public and get reported to the commission. Nothing like that happened this time, though both fighters were on point with their submissions.
Barrios, for his part, was right on schedule for the 14-day check, weighing 153, safely within the limit.
Now, with all the official pre-fight weight checks out of the way, both men can focus on Friday’s weigh-in.
Barrios is coming in as the full WBC welterweight champ, making his third defence. He’s held some version of the belt since beating Yordenis Ugas by a wide decision last September. He’s coming off two straight twelve-round draws: first with Abel Ramos in a wild fight last November, then with Manny Pacquiao last July at the MGM Grand.
As for Garcia, this will be his first shot at a full world title. He’s finally getting his chance after missing weight for his scheduled fight with Devin Haney for the WBC 140-pound belt back in April 2024. That whole episode got even messier when Garcia tested positive for Ostarine, a banned substance. He got a year-long suspension, and his majority decision over Haney was overturned to a no-contest.
Since then, Garcia has fought just once, losing on points to Rolando “Rolly” Romero after getting knocked down early in their secondary WBA welterweight title fight in New York.
Saturday marks Garcia’s return to Vegas for the first time since his huge non-title bout with Gervonta Davis in April 2023. That night ended in heartbreak. Davis stopped him in the seventh, but the event itself was a massive hit at the box office.
Everyone’s hoping Garcia brings that same energy to this fight.
There’s a twist this time, though. Joe Goossen, who trained Garcia for the Davis fight, is now in Barrios’s corner as head coach. Garcia will be sticking with his dad, Henry Garcia, his original trainer.
FLOYD MAYWEATHER IN "OFFICIAL BREACH" OF CONTRACT FOR PACQUIAO PRO REMATCH, SAYS CEO
Floyd Mayweather faces "breach of contract" as Pacquiao Promotions demands a sanctioned pro fight in Las Vegas
Looks like Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao are really gearing up for that rematch, even with all the back-and-forth talk. Fans were shocked earlier this year when word came out that they’d be squaring off at The Las Vegas Sphere on September 19, over ten years after their first fight. That first showdown back in 2015? Mayweather pretty much ran the show and scored a win on points.
But now, things feel a little fuzzy because Mayweather started hinting this wasn’t a full-on pro fight, just an exhibition. Chatting with Vegas Sports Today, he said, "As of right now, we don’t actually know where the fight is going to be at," and doubled down: "This is not actually a fight; it’s an exhibition, so we’re going to do it again, and hopefully we'll entertain the people. We’re both winners; it's an exhibition, so we’re both winners.”
On the flip side, Pacquiao’s camp isn’t budging; they want a real sanctioned bout. Pacquiao jumped back into action last year, fighting Mario Barrios to a draw. His team made it clear he’d only fight Mayweather in a legit pro match. Jas Mathur, CEO of Manny Pacquiao Promotions, pushed back hard against Mayweather’s latest comments.
Speaking to ESPN, Mathur insisted that the match is happening and is purely professional. “As of right now, the fight is still on. There is no termination of any sort, and he has signed for a professional fight," he said. Mathur didn’t mince words, either: “He's been in breach since he went out and said what he said on Saturday, and he's officially in breach as of yesterday.
"Mayweather signed three separate agreements on three different days with two different groups, all tying back together in January. It’s all about his return to pro boxing. First was October 24, then November 6, and again on December 14. He received payment when he signed each agreement, and he even took an advance on his purse for fighting Pacquiao.
"Nobody has brought up anything about the venue or whether the fight isn’t a pro match. His team has the contracts; he signed them, and we’ve got DocuSign records, wet signatures, device ID, IP address, everything.
"If Floyd’s afraid of Manny and isn’t willing to risk his record in a real match, he shouldn’t have signed anything in the first place. He should just come out and say it, because Manny’s definitely not scared.”
Mayweather walked away from pro boxing in 2017 after beating McGregor, but kept busy fighting exhibition matches against guys like Logan Paul, Deji, Aaron Chalmers, and John Gotti III. Pacquiao stepped away about five years ago to focus on politics in the Philippines, but the itch brought him back to the ring last year. Now, both seem ready or at least Pacquiao has settled the rivalry once and for all.McGregor but
JOHN FURY CONFIRMS TOTAL FAMILY COLLAPSE AHEAD OF TYSON FURY’S APRIL 11 RETURN
John Fury reveals his relationship with Tyson Fury is destroyed as the Gypsy King prepares for Arslanbek Makhmudov.
John Fury opened up in what might be his most emotional interview yet, saying that his relationship with Tyson is destroyed. It’s clear things between them have eroded beyond repair.
Tyson Fury is gearing up for his return to the ring on April 11 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, facing off against the powerful Russian heavyweight Arslanbek Makhmudov. Known as 'The Gipsy King', Tyson has already made it clear he won’t have a traditional boxing trainer this time around. Instead, he plans to handle his own training, echoing a tough, self-reliant approach.
“I’m a one-man army. I train myself like Clubber Lang,” Tyson told Sky Sports last month. “As long as someone hands me a drink and a bit of Vaseline between rounds, I’ll be fine.”
That means SugarHill Steward, the well-known coach, won’t be part of the team, nor will John Fury, Tyson’s father, who hasn’t worked with him since Tyson’s first fight against Oleksandr Usyk in May 2024.
John seems to have stepped back even further, hinting that he might not even attend the upcoming fight after revealing how broken their communication has become.
In a candid talk with Playbook Boxing on YouTube, the 60-year-old was blunt: “My relationship with Tyson is destroyed. Boxing did that, completely. I’ll say it on camera: I’ve never taken £10 from him, and I never will.”
He continued, “I don’t want Tyson’s money, and honestly, I don’t need it. Whatever he’s got, good luck to him. But people need to remember who laid the groundwork for his story when he was a kid; it wasn’t him building it alone. It was me, his father.”
John’s voice cracked as he got deeper into the topic, admitting, “I was nearly asking for a break because of how strong these feelings are. I haven’t really shown this side before, but they’re locked in there.”
When it comes to Tyson’s current state, John didn’t hold back. “I think he’s past his prime. I’m the type who says it as I see it,” he said. “I love my son, but too many folks have been telling him things that aren’t true, hyping him up as if he’s invincible. He’s not; he hasn’t been for a while.”
For John, the turning point came after Tyson’s battles with Deontay Wilder. “Those fights finished him off. Wilder really took it to him. Tyson’s legs aren’t there anymore. Makhmudov is a serious threat; that’s just how I see it.”
John understands that Tyson is trying to test himself again, but he warns that the proof will be in the ring once the bell rings.
He explained further, “Tyson was a beast, but anyone who fights one of the hardest punchers three times pays a price. You can’t just refill that tank as if nothing happened. Every punch matters.”
John pointed to Tyson’s last fight, where he went down four times from heavy shots but still pushed through with everything he had. “He fought with heart, gave it his all,” John said, “but after that knockout, he had nothing left.”
He recalled Tyson’s own words, saying that he was “ready to die in that ring” if needed, reflecting a mindset willing to risk all.
Turning to the career management side, John expressed frustration. “If you can’t give your father respect when it counts, then just move on. I don’t need that. Tyson chose