Boxing
Vergil Ortiz, not Ryan Garcia, to headline Golden Boy Promotions' first card after COVID-19 pause
Now that Top Rank has brought boxing back to television, it appears Golden Boy Promotions will follow suit, with plans to return in July.
It was once thought that the initial GBP event would be a Fourth of July card headlined by Ryan Garcia, but now it will be a card scheduled for later in the month and with Vergil Ortiz in the main event.
Oscar De La Hoya made the announcement Monday on Twitter, and the framing ruffled Garcia's feathers.
Garcia took exception to Ortiz being called the "future of boxing" and fired back in a now-deleted tweet.
“You do realize you’re supposed to be my promoter (and) not (a) hater right?” Garcia responded.
Golden Boy president Eric Gomez confirmed to ESPN that Ortiz will headline the first GBP card of the summer and explained why Garcia is no longer fighting on July 4.
"An offer was made to him and his team passed," Gomez said.
This comes not too long after Garcia said in an interview with Sports Illustrated that he felt the offer to return to the ring wasn't to his liking. Now, a relationship between Garcia and GBP that was once thought to be smoothed over after being frayed has again hit a snag.
The undefeated Ortiz was originally slated to face Samuel Vargas on March 28 in Los Angeles before the COVID-19 pandemic caused the card to be canceled. He will now be the first GBP fighter to return, against an opponent to be decided. The location has yet to be confirmed, too, but it has been reported that the Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio, Calif., is the likely landing spot for the fight.
As for Garcia, it’s anyone's guess when he will return to the ring.
