Golden Boy Promotions has officially announced that a Lightweight fight between rising star Ryan Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs) and veteran Javier Fortuna (36-2-1, 25 KOs) will take place Friday, July 9 on DAZN at a location that has yet to be determined.
“Little by little, Ryan Garcia is silencing all of the skeptics,” said Oscar De La Hoya, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy. “And the only way to keep doing that is by continually facing tougher challenges. Javier Fortuna is an experienced southpaw who can be very slippery when he wants to avoid punches. It’s a dangerous fight for Ryan, but I expect him to show newer elements in his arsenal before ending matters by knockout.”
The 22-year-old Garcia, who will defend his WBC Interim Lightweight title against Fortuna, has quickly become one of boxing’s most recognizable names. Unbeaten at 21-0, “KingRy” scored back-to-back knockout victories over Romero Duno and Francisco Fonseca before taking on the toughest test of his career in Olympic gold medalist Luke Campbell this past January.
Although he was dropped early, Garcia battled back and eventually finished Campbell with a vicious body shot in the seventh round. It marked Garcia’s sixth-straight victory by way of knockout.
“Fortuna is eager and will be ready, but so will I,” said Garcia. “No one can beat me in the lightweight division, period. I’m going to show the world who I am.”
Meanwhile, the 31-year-old Fortuna, a native of the Dominican Republic, previously held a secondary version of the WBA 130-pound title, which he won after scoring a unanimous decision victory over Bryan Vazquez in 2015.
A tough and experienced southpaw, Fortuna has won three straight fights, beating Sharif Bogere, Jesus Cuellar, and Antonio Lozada Jr.
“Ryan Garcia should take this fight very seriously and train properly because he will be facing, by far, the best fighter of his career,” said Fortuna. “Hopefully on fight night, there will be no excuses for his loss. I expect this fight to be a war while it lasts, but I have too much of everything for Ryan Garcia. His last fight showed how easy he is to hit. And his power won’t mean anything to me. But mine will put him to sleep.”
The winner of this fight will be next in line to challenge the winner of May 29’s bout between WBC Lightweight champion Devin Haney and former three-division titleholder Jorge Linares.
