Ryan Garcia Targets Teofimo Lopez
Ryan Garcia has sets his sights on Teofimo Lopez after claiming Devin Haney and Shakur Stevenson don’t want to fight him.
Despite Oscar De La Hoya pushing for an immediate rematch of their 2024 encounter, Garcia dismissed Haney’s camp’s insistence on waiting until after an expected May 30 bout with Rolando “Rolly” Romero. Garcia initially pursued a unification with Stevenson following Shakur’s January 31 victory over Lopez. However, negotiations reportedly soured over weight. Garcia alleges that Stevenson is “terrified” of his power at 147 lbs and refuses to fight without a rehydration clause that would physically drain the larger Garcia.
In contrast, Garcia praised Teofimo Lopez’s willingness to entertain the jump in weight. A Garcia-Lopez showdown would require “The Takeover” to permanently leave the 140-lb division behind. The path to the fight was significantly cleared this week by Top Rank signing its new primary broadcast deal with DAZN. With both Golden Boy and Top Rank now under the same streaming roof, the promotional “Cold War” that often kills these fights has been effectively neutralized. With Haney and Romero occupied in May, a fight could be eyed for July or August 2026.
The Approach
Against Lopez, Garcia will likely use his superior height and reach to establish a long-range jab, aiming to keep “The Takeover” on the outside where his explosive bursts can be timed. The key for Garcia is to exploit Lopez’s tendency to “reset” poorly after a missed combination. As seen in Lopez’s recent lopsided loss to Shakur Stevenson, Teofimo can become frustrated by disciplined distance management. Garcia will likely look to catch Lopez with a check hook or a straight right hand the moment Lopez lunges in to close the gap.
After being outboxed and “bewildered” by Shakur Stevenson in January 2026, Lopez’s approach to Garcia will likely shift toward explosive counter-punching. He knows he cannot out-jab Garcia from the outside, so his strategy will center on head movement and feints to bait Garcia into throwing first. Lopez’s best path to victory is to “slip and rip”—ducking under Garcia’s left hook to land a concussive overhand right or a shovel hook to the body.
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