16 January 2023 , 18:53
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Ryan Garcia's fight with Gervonta Davis could yet collapse with the rising star yet to receive a contract from his rival.
Garcia and Davis have been rivals for several months as their lightweight journeys continue to push towards a mega-fight in the near future. It looked as if fans had finally got their wish to see a huge showdown, with the pair announcing that negotiations had been successful and an agreement was in place for the fight to be staged in April.
Talks had always stalled in the past between the two fighters teams, with large portions of the fight build-up being held between the two on social media. And now Garcia's promoter Oscar De La Hoya has thrown the potential clash into further doubt, tweeting: “I have no contract, Deadline for me is Monday or I’m moving on.”
It is a worrying sign for negotiations particularly given the fight is set to take place in just a couple of months, but promoters could be banking on the popularity of both fighters marketing any clash easily enough. The fight had been agreed at an unnamed venue in Las Vegas, where both fighters have sold out venues in their own respective fights.
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Davis has already fought once this year stopping Hector Luis Garcia which many expected would definitively set up the clash with his long-term rival. Floyd Mayweather's protege insisted that the fight was scheduled next when he hit out at Garcia and YouTube star Jake Paul following his recent triumph.
"I'm ready for the fight. It's scheduled for April. I'm here," he said. "He's been training, he's been talking and let's see who's really about that. " Jake Paul is a clown and Ryan is a baby clown. Tell him to get ready. That's what they do, they like to talk off and try to get fame off other people's victories and other things like that. There shouldn't be no more talking, it should just be working."
Who do you think wins if the pair meet - Ryan Garcia or Gervonta Davis? Let us know in the comments section below
Tensions have been ramping up between the pair for a while now, with Garcia even alleging that the pair nearly came to blows during an incident in a nightclub late last year. “I actually did see Tank in the club,” Garcia said. "He's a tough guy. He was very low-key, in his hoodie. I went up to his table … and we said, ‘Yo, are we gonna make this fight happen?’ And I guess he got all offended by that. Got all worked up and I was like, ‘Yo, what you on about, man? Ain’t no respect here?
"He responds with, ‘Nah, there ain’t no respect here.’ So [I said], ‘Oh, it’s like that. OK, it’s like that.’ Then he grabbed my chain, but I wasn’t worried about [it]. There were so many security guards there. I knew he wasn’t going to take my chain or do anything, really. He just wanted to seem tough. So I said ‘It’s like that, huh?’"