Ryan Garcia makes his return to the ring against Rolly Romero in New York tonight.
It is Garcia’s first fight since his shock upset of Devin Haney last April, in which he did not win the WBC light-welterweight title after missing weight and was later suspended for a year by the New York State Athletic Commission after testing positive for the banned substance Ostarine.
Garcia - who denied any wrongdoing - was also handed a hefty fine and the result in his second bout since suffering a first defeat at the hands of Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis overturned to a no-contest.
Now the 26-year-old is cleared to fight and returns against fellow American Romero, with the vacant WBA welterweight title on the line after Jarron ‘Boots’ Ennis was promoted to ‘super champion’ at 147 pounds by the governing body.
Romero is the former WBA interim lightweight and WBA super-lightweight world champion, losing those belts against Tank Davis and Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz respectively before outpointing Manuel Jaimes in September.
Former undisputed lightweight champion Haney also fights on the card for the first time since that Garcia bout against ex-unified light-welterweight champion Jose Ramirez, with a rematch likely later this year if both men are victorious.
Also on a historic Ring Magazine card that takes place outside at Times Square is Teofimo Lopez, who defends his WBO light-welterweight title for the third time against Arnold Barboza Jr. The latter earned his shot by narrowly outpointing Jack Catterall in Manchester in February.
How to watch Garcia vs Romero
TV channel: In the UK, Garcia vs Romero is being shown live on DAZN pay-per-view. The event costs £21.99 to buy on its own, or you can pay £34.99 and receive both Friday night’s card and the undisputed super-middleweight showdown between Canelo Alvarez and William Scull in Riyadh on Saturday as part of a knockout bundle.
Live stream: Those who have purchased the fight can also watch it live online via the DAZN website and app.
