Ryan Garcia is eyeing up Mario Barrios for his next outing.
Garcia is looking for his next opponent, following a shock loss to Rolly Romero back in May.
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‘King Ry’ has amassed a professional record of 24-2 but is yet to win a world title at welterweightCredit: Getty
Talks immediately began of the pair pursuing a rematch, although it still remains up in the air and a deal is yet to materialise.
That is potentially due to the fact that Romero is the favourite to face-off with Manny Pacquiao in his next fight, on January 24.
Should Pacquiao and Romero go head-to-head for the latter’s WBA welterweight strap, Garcia has planned his route to fight the winner.
Surprisingly, it involves Pacquiao’s last rival.
In a conversation on The Warroom on Showbizz’s YouTube channel, he has revealed that he wants a fight with Barrios.
He said: “I have not said this publicly, but I want Mario Barrios.
“I’m going to go for it.”
The 27-year-old sees his chance at taking Barrios’ WBC welterweight title, and dollar signs for everyone involved.
Garcia continued: “If you want to make some good money, let’s go run it.
“I can leverage to, ‘Alright, Rolly, I got that,’ or Manny [Pacquiao].
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Garcia’s fight with Romero headlined Ring Magazine’s Times Square cardCredit: Getty
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Garcia was competing for the first time since serving a one-year doping ban after testing positive for banned substance ostarineCredit: Getty
“If Manny beats him, then I got to fight him. I only know how this [money] works.”
Are we likely to see Ryan Garcia challenging Mario Barrios?
While Garcia is coming off of a loss, it’s not impossible that he could be up for a world title fight with Barrios.
After all, Pacquiao did return from a four-year hiatus to share the ring with him in July.
So, Garcia could find himself opposite the champion in the ring after all.
Barrios was fortunate to keep his belts and was open to a rematch with the legend, but is likely to miss out with Garcia another big-name option.
Although Barrios is yet to be strongly linked with another opponent, Conor Benn has made it clear he is targeting his belt.
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Barrios retained his title when his bout with Pacquiao was ruled as a majority drawCredit: Getty
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Pacquiao is now gearing up for his second shot at a world title, in as many fights, after returning to the pro sceneCredit: Getty
Should he drop back down to middleweight after his rematch with Chris Eubank Jr in November, Benn sees Barrios as the most suitable opponent.
Garcia could then also find his dream of fighting ‘Pac Man’ coming true, should Pacquiao vs Romero come into fruition.
Garcia certainly has his sights set on at least one world title shot in the next 12 months, but isn’t shying away from a second.