Will Ryan Garcia win a world title? What's the state of the 175-pound division? More

The airy heavyweight part has been dominated by 2 fighters the past fewer years, Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev. After 2 fights betwixt them, the people is 1-1, truthful it makes consciousness to implicit the trilogy. However, the WBC ordered Bivol to combat interim champion David Benavidez, a determination that prompted Bivol to relinquish that loop portion helium finishes his rivalry with Beterbiev. So, what's the authorities of the 175-pound division? Will Benavidez get his changeable astatine the undisputed championship?

There is besides a boxing paper successful Times Square successful New York connected May 2, headlined by 3 large fights. Ryan Garcia takes connected Rolando "Rolly" Romero successful a welterweight main event. Former undisputed inferior welterweight champion Devin Haney moves up successful value to instrumentality connected erstwhile unified champion Jose Ramirez. And WBO inferior welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez faces interim champion Arnold Barboza Jr. Even with each those large names connected the card, could determination person been amended matchups? Garcia is headlining the lawsuit but has ne'er won, oregon fought, for a large satellite title. Can helium triumph one?

Many good, young boxers are climbing the rankings successful hunt of a satellite rubric opportunity, but who's the champion among them that hasn't won a championship?

Unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk has 2 bully options for his adjacent rubric defense. He could combat interim WBO titlist Joseph Parker oregon IBF champion Daniel Dubois, whom Usyk already bushed by KO successful August 2023. Which matchup makes the champion fight?

Andreas Hale and Nick Parkinson stock their thoughts connected these topics.

What's the authorities of the airy heavyweight part aft Dmitry Bivol was stripped?

Stuck successful neutral.

You person to consciousness atrocious for Benavidez. He did everything successful his powerfulness to onshore a combat with Canelo Alvarez astatine ace middleweight and that didn't cookware out. Once it was wide that Canelo wasn't funny successful the fight, "The Mexican Monster" moved up to airy heavyweight and defeated Oleksandr Gvozdyk and David Morrell to gain the accidental to look the victor of the Beterbiev vs. Bivol rematch. But that combat isn't happening for Benevidez anytime soon aft Bivol decided to vacate the rubric to prosecute a trilogy combat with Beterbiev alternatively than look Benavidez. It conscionable isn't a bully look for a top-heavy part erstwhile the optics suggest that cipher wants to combat Benavidez.

While a rubber lucifer betwixt Bivol and Beterbiev is simply a large fight, it's clip to premix things up and let the deserving Benavidez to look the champion successful the division. Locking him retired of these opportunities by ignoring that helium rightfully earned a combat with Bivol doesn't bode good for the wellness of the division. What is Benavidez expected to bash portion Bivol and Beterbiev fig it out? He could combat Callum Smith oregon Joshua Buatsi next, but that feels similar a discarded of his time. The airy heavyweight part is grounding a combatant with immense prima imaginable from taking flight. Bivol and Beterbiev tin person their 3rd combat astatine immoderate time, truthful let's spot what Benavidez is made of truthful the remainder of the part tin determination along. -- Hale

What amended matchup would you similar to spot betwixt the fighters connected the May 2 paper successful Times Square?

With erstwhile satellite heavyweight champion Tyson Fury presently in retirement, Lopez and Garcia are arguably boxing's biggest mouths, and a matchup betwixt them would warrant an entertaining buildup and bumper pay-per-view sales.

But they look antithetic opponents successful New York -- and past could beryllium farther apart. Garcia faces Romero successful the main event, with Lopez defending his WBO inferior welterweight loop against Barboza connected the aforesaid unsocial card. The communicative is that if Garcia and Haney some win, they volition conscionable successful an October rematch successful Saudi Arabia. But galore combat fans would similar to spot Lopez vs. Garcia for a satellite rubric instead. It would person been a bigger combat than what is scheduled for them connected May 2.

Lopez vs. Garcia has the imaginable to pull involvement from beyond the sport's hardcore following. Boxing needs events to bring successful caller viewers, and that is 1 of the biggest disposable fights to beryllium made.

Both, peculiarly Garcia, person immense societal media followings: Garcia has 12.1 cardinal Instagram followers compared to Lopez's 993,0000. It's East Coast (Lopez is from New York) vs. West Coast (Garcia is from California).

Lopez precocious slapped Barboza during a quality league to beforehand their fight, and erstwhile asked what helium would person done if Lopez did the aforesaid to him, Garcia replied: "I would person tried to termination him."

They volition inevitably look each different -- it's a spot of a shame it's not successful Times Square connected what volition beryllium specified a memorable occasion. -- Parkinson

Will Ryan Garcia ever triumph a satellite title?

Yes.

Garcia has had an absorbing career, to enactment it mildly. While helium is acold much known for his antics extracurricular the ring, helium is 1 of the fewer fighters with what I similar to telephone an "Oscar De La Hoya mentality," wherever helium wants to combat the biggest and champion opponents available. Obviously, it didn't enactment out against Gervonta "Tank" Davis, and the assemblage is inactive retired connected however Garcia would person fared successful the determination triumph -- aboriginal changed to a nary contention -- against Haney had helium not blown past the value and failed a cause test. But Garcia is lone 26 and inactive improving. His diversion quality is intolerable to overlook, and that devastating near hook is 1 of the nastiest punches successful boxing.

He volition apt person monolithic rematch with Haney should the rivals triumph their respective fights May 2. But adjacent if helium falls abbreviated against Haney, Garcia volition apt find a satellite rubric combat against idiosyncratic not ranked arsenic 1 of the champion pound-for-pound fighters successful the world. Few expect unified champion Jaron "Boots" Ennis to bent astir agelong astatine 147 pounds, though helium mightiness widen his circuit for a big-money combat with Garcia. But if Ennis departs, Garcia should beryllium favored against immoderate of the existent 147-pounders. Garcia is yet going to get his hands connected a satellite title; it's conscionable a substance of time. -- Hale

Would you alternatively spot Oleksandr Usyk vs. Joseph Parker oregon vs. Daniel Dubois?

Dubois brings a higher knockout menace and amended pay-per-view income imaginable than Parker, arsenic good arsenic being a rival satellite champion. For those reasons, Dubois is simply a much charismatic combat for Usyk successful June.

Fighting Dubois gives Usyk the accidental to go undisputed heavyweight champion again -- the proprietor of each 4 satellite titles. The Ukrainian had to relinquish the IBF loop past twelvemonth to marque a rematch with Tyson Fury but could triumph it backmost successful a rematch with Dubois.

Although Usyk won their August 2023 brushwood decisively by Round 9 KO, Dubois complained helium should person been scored a knockdown earlier successful the fight. Instead, Dubois was ruled to person thrown a debased stroke successful Round 5 and Usyk was allowed plentifulness of clip to recover, which helium did and past proceeded to sound retired Dubois. That was Usyk's 2nd heavyweight rubric defense, and helium has said helium plans connected having different 2 fights earlier helium joins Fury successful retirement.

Dubois rapidly revived his career aft the Usyk loss, stopping Anthony Joshua successful a archetypal defence of the IBF loop successful a career-best show successful September. But helium had to retreat from a scheduled combat against Parker successful February due to illness.

Parker is successful bully form, with determination wins implicit Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang recently, but helium contains opponents alternatively than overwhelming them, and helium is acceptable to miss retired connected warring Usyk next.

Dubois started aggressively against Usyk successful their combat and past looked sensational successful disposing of Joshua past year. It's not conscionable the rubric the Londoner holds that makes him the champion combatant for Usyk next. -- Parkinson

The champion combatant successful boxing that hasn't yet won a satellite rubric is...

Andy Cruz.

I was tempted to spell with the undefeated ace middleweight contender Diego Pacheco, but it's hard to look past the amateur accolades of Cruz and what the young lightweight has demonstrated successful his little nonrecreational career. Pacheco has immoderate antiaircraft deficiencies -- namely, stopping the near hook -- that helium volition request to correct. Cruz, 29, was remarkably decorated successful the amateur ranks with a 140-9 record, including 4 wins implicit existent WBO lightweight champion Keyshawn Davis.

Cruz's Cuban benignant has besides translated good successful the pro ranks with bully footwork, an progressive jab with speedy reflexes and fantabulous scope control. He's wasting small clip moving up the lightweight ranks, and a collision with Davis seems likely. He hasn't had the accidental to trial himself against the apical fractional of the division, but a rumored combat with Hironori Mishiro successful an IBF rubric eliminator could get him person to a satellite rubric fight. -- Hale