Fight Between Ryan Garcia & Gervonta Davis Officially Confirmed

It’s official… Ryan Garcia will battle Gervonta Davis.

The 136-pound catchweight fight between 24-year-old Mexican American boxer and Davis is now finalized.

Ryan GarciaBoth boxers announced on social media that they’ll meet April 22 in Las Vegas.

Finalizing the broadcast agreement between Showtime and DAZN was all that was left, and that’s now been done. The fight will be broadcast on Showtime PPV.

The fight had been planned for April 15, but was pushed back one week to allow more time for promotion as negotiations dragged out, sources said.

The fight between the two stars is perhaps the biggest commercial event boxing can deliver. A dispute over the rematch clause had threatened to derail the fight, but that issue was resolved earlier this month after PBC agreed that Golden Boy would serve as the lead promoter for a second bout if Garcia wins.

Only Davis can exercise the rematch clause in the event he loses, per sources.

Typically, boxers have 30 days to activate their right to an immediate return bout.

Davis (28-0, 26 KOs) will earn slightly more for the first fight, according to sources, and is the betting favorite. Davis defeated Hector Luis Garcia last month via ninth-round TKO to keep the Ryan Garcia matchup intact.

Earlier this month, Davis pleaded guilty to four counts stemming from a hit-and-run crash in November 2020 in Baltimore that left four people injured, including a pregnant woman. Davis’ sentencing is set for May 5, which means any potential punishment won’t interfere with his ability to compete in April.

Davis was arraigned Thursday in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in connection with a Dec. 27 misdemeanor domestic violence charge of battery causing bodily harm. His next hearing is set for March 31, per Broward County court records. Davis pleaded not guilty after allegedly hitting the mother of his 1-year-old daughter with a “closed-hand type slap,” according to police, who said she suffered a small abrasion on the inside of her upper lip. She asked the court to dismiss charges in an affidavit filed Jan. 24.

Both Davis and Garcia announced on Instagram in mid-November that they would meet in a long-awaited fight in 2023, but it took months to reach an agreement on terms.

Davis, a 28-year-old from Baltimore, is one of the biggest needle-movers in boxing. “Tank” has 4.2 million Instagram followers and routinely fights before a host of celebrities. ESPN’s No. 3 lightweight, Davis won a junior lightweight title with a seventh-round KO of Jose Pedraza in 2017.

Before he defeated Hector Luis Garcia, Davis scored wins over Isaac Cruz and Rolly Romero in 135-pound bouts.

Garcia (23-0, 19 KOs) is a star, too, with over 9 million followers on Instagram.

Regarded for his lightning-quick hands, he scored a career-best win in January 2021 after he survived a knockdown to stop Luke Campbell in the seventh round. He didn’t fight for the rest of 2021 after he withdrew from a bout with Javier Fortuna to address his mental health followed by wrist surgery that scrapped a match with Joseph Diaz Jr. Garcia, who fights out of Southern California, returned last year with wins over Emmanuel Tagoe and  Fortuna at 140 pounds. Garcia, who formerly campaigned at 135 pounds, vowed to remain at 140 but will drop four pounds for the catchweight bout.

Garcia had been set to fight Mercito Gesta in January, but bypassed the planned tuneup bout to head directly into the high-stakes showdown with Davis.

Ryan Garcia Signs Contract for April 15 Super Fight vs. Gervonta Davis

Ryan Garcia is one step closer to a long-awaited bout…

The 24-year-old Mexican American boxer and Gervonta Davis have both signed contracts for an April 15 super fight in Las Vegas at a 136-pound catchweight, according to ESPN.

Ryan GarciaThe deal, which has been in the works since November, will be finalized once broadcasters Showtime and DAZN sign contracts, sources said.

Showtime, Davis’ and promoter PBC‘s longtime network, sent the contract to DAZN on Saturday, per source. The streaming service is the home of Garcia, who competes for Oscar De La Hoya‘s Golden Boy Promotions.

The fight between the star boxers is perhaps the biggest commercial event boxing can deliver. A dispute over the rematch clause threatened to derail the fight, but that issue was resolved last week after PBC agreed that Golden Boy Promotions would serve as the lead promoter for the rematch if Garcia wins.

Only Davis can exercise the rematch clause in the event he loses, per sources.

Typically, boxers have 30 days to activate their right to an immediate return bout.

Davis (28-0, 26 KOs) will earn the lion’s share of revenue for the first fight, per sources, and is the betting favorite to win the bout. The Baltimore native defeated Hector Luis Garcia last month via ninth-round TKO to keep the Ryan Garcia matchup intact.

On Thursday, Davis pleaded guilty to four counts stemming from a hit-and-run crash in November 2020 in Baltimore that left four people injured, including a pregnant woman. Davis’ sentencing is set for May 5, which means any potential punishment won’t interfere with his ability to compete in April.

Davis is also set to be arraigned on Feb. 23 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in connection with a December 27 misdemeanor domestic violence charge of battery causing bodily harm. Davis pleaded not guilty after allegedly hitting the mother of his 1-year-old daughter with a “closed-hand type slap,” according to police, who said she suffered a small abrasion on the inside of her upper lip. She asked the court to dismiss charges in an affidavit filed January 24.

Both Davis and Garcia announced on Instagram in mid-November that they would meet in a long-awaited fight in 2023, but it took months to reach an agreement on terms.

Davis is one of the biggest needle-movers in boxing. “Tank” has 4.2 million Instagram followers and routinely fights before a host of celebrities. ESPN’s No. 3 lightweight, Davis won a junior lightweight title with a seventh-round KO of Jose Pedraza in 2017.

Before he defeated Hector Luis Garcia, Davis scored wins over Isaac Cruz and Rolly Romero in 135-pound bouts.

Garcia (23-0, 19 KOs) is a star, too, with over 9 million followers on Instagram. Regarded for his lightning-quick hands, he scored a career-best win in January 2021 after he survived a knockdown to stop Luke Campbell in the seventh round.

He didn’t fight the rest of 2021 after he withdrew from a fight with Javier Fortuna to address his mental health followed by wrist surgery that scrapped a bout with Joseph Diaz Jr.

Garcia, who fights out of Southern California, returned last year with wins over Emmanuel Tagoe and Javier Fortuna at 140 pounds. Garcia, who formerly campaigned at 135 pounds, vowed to remain at 140 but will drop four pounds for the catchweight bout.

Garcia was set to fight Mercito Gesta in January, but he bypassed the planned tune-up bout to head directly into the high-stakes showdown with Davis.

Ryan Garcia to Fight Mercito Gesta in January 2023 Tune-Up Fight

Ryan Garcia has locked in his tune-up opponent…

The 24-year-old Mexican American professional boxer has signed a contract to fight Mercito Gesta in a January 28 fight in Phoenix, according to ESPN.

Ryan “Kingry” Garcia 

The 140-pound bout will serve as a tune-up for Garcia, who is slated to meet Gervonta Davis on April 15 in a Las Vegas superfight at a 136-pound catchweight.

Davis (27-0, 25 KOs) has his own tuneup January 7 against 130-pound titleholder Hector Luis Garcia in Washington.

Both Ryan Garcia and Davis must emerge victorious — and uninjured — from their respective January bouts to proceed with their April 15 pay-per-view showdown.

Davis’ trial for his alleged involvement in a hit-and-run crash, meanwhile, is scheduled for Feb. 16 in his native Baltimore, according to court records.

Garcia (23-0, 19 KOs) is one of the biggest stars in boxing, with 9 million followers on Instagram. He will be a heavy favorite against Gesta, a 35-year-old Filipino who has won two of his past five bouts.

The matchup with Gesta (33-3-3, 17 KOs) comes after a pair of victories for Garcia this year, both at 140 pounds. He scored a unanimous-decision win over fringe contender Emmanuel Tagoe in April and followed up with a sixth-round KO over perennial contender Javier Fortuna.

Garcia, who fights out of the San Diego area, picked up his career-best victory in January 2021 after he survived a knockdown to stop Luke Campbell in the seventh round.

He didn’t fight the rest of 2021 after he withdrew from a fight with Fortuna to address his mental health then had to scrap a bout with Joseph Diaz Jr. due to wrist surgery.

While Garcia is facing a genuine stay-busy opponent, Davis is meeting a boxer who broke through in 2022.

Hector Luis Garcia, a 10-1 underdog, routed Chris Colbert via unanimous decision in February before a wide-points victory over Roger Gutierrez earned him the WBA junior lightweight title.

The 31-year-old Dominican is ESPN’s No. 4 boxer at 130 pounds. Hector Luis Garcia (16-0, 10 KOs) will move up 5 pounds for the lightweight clash with Davis.