Conor Benn’s manager has provided an update on the Ryan Garcia situation, admitting there is a possibility of negotiations “falling apart” in the coming weeks.
Talks for their potential encounter have seemingly made steady progress, with the pair expected to collide for Garcia’s WBC world welterweight title later this year.
The 27-year-old claimed his belt in February, dethroning Mario Barrios with a wide unanimous decision victory after flooring his man in the opening round.
This was his first win since 2023, with the American’s previous two outings resulting in a points defeat to Rolando Romero and a no-contest against Devin Haney.
Between those two fights, Garcia completed a year-long ban after testing positive for banned substance ostarine, which scuppered the credibility of his performance against Haney.
Benn, too, has previously tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance – specifically the clomifene variety – but has nonetheless become the WBC’s leading contender at 147lbs.
Having not made the weight since 2022, the 29-year-old is coming off a 10-round points victory over the since-retired Regis Prograis, who he fought at a catchweight of 150lbs on the undercard of Tyson Fury vs Arslanbek Makhmudov last month.
Since then, Benn has doubled down on his desire to face Garcia, while manager Keith Connolly tells Boxing News that there is essentially a 50/50 chance that the fight happens.
“We’re in the middle of negotiating [Garcia-Benn], along with some other big fights. I could see it happening; I could see it falling apart – but we’re targeting that fight right now.
“I think that’s a great fight for both guys. It’ll be a massive fight if it’s over here [in the UK] and it’ll be a massive fight it it’s in [Las] Vegas. It’s a sell-out wherever it goes.
“I think we’ll know in the next couple of weeks where we’re headed, but that’s definitely the fight that we want.”
Benn’s victory over Prograis followed his middleweight triumph over Chris Eubank Jr in November, when ‘The Destroyer’ exacted his revenge after losing their first encounter by unanimous decision.