Viewing date: Saturday, April 20th. Qualifying is scheduled to begin at 4:35pm on DAZN. ET (9:35 p.m. BST), pay-per-view cards begin at 8 p.m. 1am ET/1am BST
How to watch: Pay-per-view on DAZN and PPV.com. Why you should watch: Yes, these are two fighters with history, but more important is what this main event match at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center means for their futures.
Haney and Garcia had an amateur rivalry and faced each other six times in the unpaid ranks, winning three times each. The past remained strong with them, and years later they continued to discuss what happened in the final battle.
Although for different reasons, both have become stars since turning pro. Haney has been far more successful. Garcia is more of a celebrity and influencer, which is clearly controversial.
Haney, a 25-year-old California Bay Area native currently fighting in Las Vegas, is a former lightweight champion who moved up to junior welterweight to win a world title.
This is a far cry from the days when Haney was derided as the “postal champion” who won his first belt at 135, when the WBC named Vasily Lomachenko its “franchise champion.”
(Fun fact: Every time his boxing writer describes his WBC stupidity, an angel ends up losing his wings.)
But then Haney won two fights over George Kambosos Jr., who defeated Teofimo Lopez and Lomachenko, becoming the undisputed champion and owner of all four major world titles. Haney then qualified for a competitive bout with Lomachenko. Last December, he moved up to 140 and defeated Regis Prograis in a dominant shutout victory to win the WBC belt and improve his record to 31-0 (15 KOs). Garcia has not been Haney’s most successful opponent in his career, but this fight could bring more attention to Haney’s talent. And no matter what happens, a win Saturday night will put Haney in the conversation in one of boxing’s deeper divisions.
The weight class also includes Lopez (WBO belt and lineal champion), Isaac Cruz (WBA), and the winner of June’s bout between Sabriel Matias (IBF) and Liam Palo. and many other candidates, including, in alphabetical order, Adam Azim, Arnold Barboza, Jack Catterall, Lindolfo Delgado, Shojahon Ergashev, Richardson Hitchens, Batyrzhan Jukenbayev, Brandon Lee, Gustavo Lemos, and former There are title holders, current title challengers, and interested parties. Sander Martin, Ernesto Mercado, Jose Ramirez, Gary Antuan Russell, Kenneth Sims Jr., Dalton Smith, Josh Taylor.
TV Picks of The Week: Devin Haney vs. Ryan Garcia Headlines on Pay-Per-View https://t.co/VHjMBGIEUj
— BoxingScene.com (@boxingscene) April 15, 2024
Garcia, a 25-year-old from Victorville, Calif., who now calls Los Angeles home, also hopes to be on the list. At this point, he can be described as a former lightweight contender at best.
Garcia’s best wins came in 2021 and 2022 at the 135-pound and 140-pound weight classes, coming off the canvas to stop lightweight Luke Campbell, followed by junior welterweights over Emmanuel Tagoe and Javier. He gave Fortuna two decisions. At the moment, none of these names are considered one of the top players in either of these divisions. And when Garcia got involved with one of the biggest names in the lightweight division, it didn’t end well.
This fight took place about a year ago, in April 2023, against Gervonta Davis. It was a big event because both Davis and Garcia are very popular. Davis’ skill, talent, experience and poise led him to victory that night. He knocked out Garcia in the second round and took the count with a body shot in the seventh round. Rumors then circulated that Garcia had arrived with a rib injury, but that didn’t change the loss.
Garcia returned in December of last year and improved his record to 24-1 (20 KOs) by knocking out Oscar Duarte in the eighth round. He’s said a lot over the years – this fight with Haney has been one of the most constantly baffling and annoying fight build-ups in recent memory – but now Garcia It’s time to step back or shut up.
That means Garcia will have to win, or at least perform well, against Haney on Saturday night.
Thanks to his good looks and leveraging social media to amass an impressive following, he attracted crowds and attention much earlier than most other fighters. But does he have the goods? Or maybe he’ll be better known as a combination of Wolf Boy and Ricardo Mayorga? His mouth is what contributes to his marketability. His mouth is writing checks that can’t be cashed in his ass, even if his bank account can cash them. Speaking of bank accounts, if you want to bank your bank account for this show, know that there are at least four matches on the televised card. You’ll be presented with an unappealing list that, at least on paper, appears to prioritize quantity over quality:
Junior welterweight contestant Arnold Barboza Jr., who appears on some shows as a backup if needed in the main event, will face Sean McComb.
Barboza, 32, from El Monte, California, fought only once in 2023, defeating former junior lightweight and lightweight titleholder Jose Pedraza in 10 rounds in February. Barboza then parted ways with promoter Top Rank and ultimately signed with Golden Boy Promotions. His first appearance under his banner was in January, when he stopped Xolisani Ndongeni in eight rounds, improving Barboza’s record to 29-0 (11 KOs).
Barboza is one of many notable fighters in the 140 pound class. However, with this choice of opponent, you will not be able to proceed further. McComb, 18-1 (5 KOs), wasn’t on the list of junior welterweights for someone like Barboza to face. With that in mind, the 31-year-old from Belfast will look to improve at Barboza’s expense on Saturday night – I’ve been waiting for this opportunity for a long time, and now it’s come “with both hands.” McComb said in a press release.
McComb’s only loss was to a fighter named Gavin Gwynn, who is 12-2 in 2021. Since then, he has gone on a seven-fight winning streak, culminating in a wide decision over Sam Maxwell last December.
Bektemir Melikuziev will aim to defeat Pierre Hubert Dibombe in a battle of super middleweight talent. Melikuziev, a 2016 silver medalist representing Uzbekistan, turned professional in 2019 but soon suffered a shocking knockout loss. He had dropped Gabriel Rosado in the first round of their 2021 fight, but was soon injured and finished the fight in the third round thanks to Rosado’s perfect counter. The 28-year-old has since won six straight fights, including a decision rematch with Rosado in April 2023 and a fourth-round TKO win over Arantes Fox last August. Melikuziev is currently 13-1 (10 KOs).
Di Bombe, 32 years old from France, is 22-0-1 (12 KOs). He has spent most of his career fighting low-profile opponents in his home country, and his last two fights took him across the Atlantic, where he defeated professional opponent Sladan Janjanin in Toronto in March 2022 in five rounds. He then won in four rounds. June 2023, Round TKO on cover of Derrick Findley in Atlantic City.
Junior bantamweights John “Scrappy” Ramirez and David Jimenez will fight for the interim WBA world title. Ramirez, a 27-year-old from Los Angeles, has been a pro for just over three years. He is 13-0 (9 KOs), coming off a 2023 season that saw him beat Luis Villa Padilla, score a split decision over Fernando Diaz, and pick up a fourth-round KO over Ronal Batista. It is said that Jimenez is 15-1 (11 KOs) and is fighting for his second title. The 31-year-old Costa Rican native lost a decision to Artem Dalakian in a flyweight title fight in January 2023, but has won three straight since then.
The show opens with a match between undefeated junior middleweight contestant Charles Conwell and division benchmark Nathaniel Gallimore.
Conwell, a 26-year-old from Cleveland, competed in the 2016 Olympics, but lost in the opening round. He turned professional in 2017 and has a record of 18-0 (13 KOs), but has not fought since defeating Juan Carlos Abreu by majority decision in November 2022.
Gallimore has also been inactive, last appearing in January 2023, when he was stopped in six rounds by Serhiy Bokhatyuk. The defeat, which brought Gallimore’s record to 22-7-1 (17 KOs), was the last loss against a high-profile fighter for the 35-year-old Jamaican native who is currently based in Illinois. Gallimore scored a TKO win over future unified champion Jason Rosario in 2017, but then lost decisions to Julian Williams, Patrick Teixeira, Eriksson Rubin, and was stopped by Sebastian Fundora.
More fights to watch
Friday, April 19: Kurt Scobee vs. Dakota Ringer (DAZN, time TBA, ET)
Scobey is an undefeated welterweight prospect who fights out of New York City and has a record of 13-0 (11 KOs). The 28-year-old will headline the show at Atlanta’s Overtime Elite Arena. Scobee has won eight straight fights by knockout or technical knockout, and is gradually increasing the level of his opponents. His last win was in August when he defeated Narciso Carmona in six rounds, 11-0-1.
Scobee’s opponent, Ringer, has a record of 13 wins, 6 losses, and 3 draws (9 KOs). The 29-year-old from West Virginia has lost to big-name fighters such as Danielito Zorilla (2018 KO2), Omar Juarez (2020 UD8) and Brandon Lee (2020 TKO3). Ringer surprised Josue Vargas in 2022 with a second round TKO victory. He then spent a year out of the ring and was prevented from returning by another challenger, who was knocked out in the ninth round by Reshat Mati last June.
Undercard: His first two bouts in the junior middleweight tournament.
In the bout, Brandon Adams (23-3 (15 KOs)) will face Ismael Villarreal (13-2 (9 KOs)). Adams lost to Jermall Charlo in 2019 and most recently scored a big win in 2021 with a knockout of Serhiy Bokhatyuk. Villarreal lost to Callum Walsh in November. In the other bout, Angel Luis Astorga (18-2-1 (13 KOs)) will face Francisco Daniel Veron (13-0-1 (10 KOs)).
Saturday, April 20: Cain Sandoval vs. Angel Revollar (UFC Fight Pass, 9 p.m. ET)
Sandoval is an undefeated challenger at 140 pounds and enters this bout with a record of 12-0 (11 KOs). The 21-year-old from Sacramento, Calif., only fought in February, going the distance for the first time and earning a 10-inning shutout victory over Javier Molina.
Leboler, a 20-year-old from California, is 8-3 (3 KOs). All three losses were decision losses to Top Rank contractees Abdullah Mason and Charlie Sheehy, and a points loss to Anthony Cuban on March 30 that tested Carmel Morton. Revollar has won two straight fights, including a unanimous decision win over undefeated Omar Rosario last November.
April 20th (Saturday): Jurgen Urdedade vs. Damir Bejo (DAZN, time TBA)
This main event will be held at his BMW Park in Munich.
Urdejei is a 26-year-old cruiserweight from Albania currently fighting in Germany. He lost a decision to an 8-3 opponent in Benoît Huber about a year ago, but returned with a win in February over an opponent in 7-2 Jon Frank Mendy. It’s here. With this, Urdejay’s record stands at 16 wins and 1 loss (6 KOs).
He meets Beljo, a 39-year-old from Bosnia and Herzegovina. Bellgio also recently returned from his first professional loss. This loss occurred at the end of 2022 by second-round technical knockout against Alexei Papin. Bergio took about a year off, but wasn’t given much time to shake off the ring rust, spending 131 seconds knocking out an inferior and unbeaten opponent 10-0. He was appointed by Marko Petricevic last October. Saturday April 20: Sam Nokes vs Yvan Mendy (TNT Sports 1, 10pm BST)
The main event at London’s York Hall will pit undefeated lightweight Noakes against the experienced Mendy.
Noakes, 26, from Maidstone, is 13-0 (13 KOs). He faced fellow undefeated opponent Louis Sylvester in February, winning by TKO in the fourth round.
Mendy, 38, from France, has a record of 48 wins, 6 losses, and 1 draw (22 KOs). He has faced some notable fighters, including a loss to Edith Tatli, a 1-1 draw with Luke Campbell, and a decision loss in his last fight to Dennis Belinczyk in 2022. Since then, Mendy has lost a split decision to undefeated Bastian Ballesta last May.
