Ryan Garcia Defends WBC Welterweight Title Against Conor Benn — SkimNews
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- Ryan Garcia defends his WBC welterweight title for the first time against Conor Benn at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday (8 p.m. ET, Paramount+), in the first Mexican Independence Day Weekend headliner of his career.
- Garcia is listed as high as a 4-to-1 betting favorite against a Benn who hasn't campaigned at 147 pounds full-time since 2022, visibly struggled making a 149-pound catchweight in April, and has publicly said he plans to move up to 160 or 168 after Saturday.
- Garcia credits his February upset of Mario Barrios to reuniting with his father Henry as head trainer, restoring the technical fundamentals he had lost while bouncing between Eddy Reynoso, Joe Goossen, and Derrick James.
- Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions still represents Garcia despite a nearly-broken personal relationship, setting up a potential promotional clash at fight week against Zuffa's Dana White and Saudi financier Turki Alalshikh through parent company TKO.
- Jai Opetaia (30-0) meets Noel Mikaelian (28-3) in the cruiserweight co-main, where Mikaelian defied 95-year-old promoter Don King to accept the fight — a move the source says will cost him the WBC belt, which was ordered to be defended against David Benavidez instead.
Why it matters: Garcia is as much as a 4-to-1 favorite defending a title he only won in February, while Benn — who hasn't campaigned at 147 full-time since 2022 and has already announced plans to move to 160 or 168 after Saturday — is essentially a transitional challenger. A loss would expose Garcia's WBC reign as paper-thin before his first real defense, while the co-main's winner earns a credible claim as the world's top cruiserweight.
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