MARIO BARRIOS VS RYAN GARCIA - FULL MAIN CARD PREVIEW
One of the most outspoken, controversial yet most talented figures in the world of boxing returns to the ring this weekend as Ryan Garcia faces off with WBC World Welterweight champion Mario Barrios in Las Vegas.
On the undercard, there are two cracking chief supports as Gary Antuanne Russell defends his WBA World Super-Lightweight title against Japan’s Andy Hiraoka, whilst Richardson Hitchins makes the second defence of his IBF World Super-Lightweight title against the game Mexican Oscar Duarte — and that’s the fight we will be taking a look at first.
Richardson Hitchins vs Oscar Duarte
IBF World Super-Lightweight Title
Undefeated in 20 professional outings, Hitchins has been widely regarded as one of the most avoided fighters in the 140lbs division of late.
After dethroning Liam Paro at the end of 2024, he put in arguably the best performance of his career when stopping Paro’s fellow Aussie George Kambosos Jr back in June of last year.
Mexican Duarte comes into the fight off the back of a four-fight win streak. With 30 victories from 33 professional fights — 23 of those coming by stoppage — this is clearly a man who can whack.
His last defeat came at the hands of Ryan Garcia back in 2023 where, despite forcing the pace, he felt Garcia’s power all too often, which ultimately saw the referee wave the fight off after he had hit the canvas.
In terms of how the fight goes, this is a great piece of matchmaking for Hitchins.
Duarte is relatively easy to hit and someone of Hitchins’s calibre should be able to outbox him fairly comfortably, so long as the American doesn’t get dragged into a dogfight. Expect him to cruise to a unanimous points decision victory here.
Gary Antuanne Russell vs Andy Hiraoka
WBA World Super-Lightweight Title
In what looks to be the biggest 50/50 on the card, Gary Antuanne Russell makes the first defence of his WBA World Super-Lightweight title against Japan’s Andy Hiraoka.
One of the biggest pound-for-pound punchers in world boxing right now, with 17 knockouts from 18 wins, Russell suffered the first defeat of his career to Albert Puello in 2024 before beating Jose Valenzuela for the WBA world title last year.
Despite being the more experienced man, Hiraoka’s journey to the top has been much quieter.
This will be just the third time he has fought outside of Japan in 25 fights, but he has beaten the likes of Ishmael Barroso and was used by the talented Jack Catterall as his main sparring partner ahead of his fight with Josh Taylor.
It’s a fight that really cannot be overlooked. Russell can’t afford to be complacent here. Hiraoka is a legitimate contender who can punch and box, and the mix of styles might be able to counteract Russell’s heavy hands.
The bookies have the American as a big favourite, but do not be surprised to see Hiraoka pull off the upset as he looks to make it three from three on American soil.
Mario Barrios vs Ryan Garcia
WBC World Welterweight Title
Now to the main event, where Mario Barrios will look to make a successful third defence of his WBC World Welterweight title against Ryan Garcia.
Despite making two successful defences of his world title, Barrios hasn’t actually won either of those fights.
He drew with Abel Ramos back in 2024 and then made it back-to-back draws last July when sharing a split draw with Manny Pacquiao.
Like Barrios, Ryan Garcia hasn’t had it straightforward of late.
After beating Devin Haney, he tested positive for a banned PED the day before and on the day of the fight back in April 2024.
He was handed a one-year ban and then, in his comeback fight, put in a lacklustre performance to come up short against Rolly Romero.
With neither man coming into this fight in any kind of form, it’s trickier to predict than most people think.
Barrios is one of those fighters who doesn’t do anything particularly spectacularly, but he does everything pretty well — a well-rounded fighter who is massive for his weight.
Garcia, on the other hand, is pretty much the opposite: a counter-puncher with dynamite in both hands and lightning hand speed.
On paper, this should be fairly straightforward for Garcia, but as we saw in the Romero fight, nothing is straightforward in Ryan Garcia’s crazy world.
If Garcia can put a dent in Barrios early, it will be his fight to lose. However, if he hasn’t carried the extra weight up well and Barrios is able to drag him into the later rounds, things could become very uncomfortable for the challenger.
For Barrios, it’s simple: keep the fight at range and mentally break Garcia.
Watch Barrios vs Garcia, this Saturday HERE and use code IFLTV7 at checkout for $5 off the PPV (new customers only)