Boxing
WBC orders Ryan Garcia vs. Luke Campbell with winner to face champion Devin Haney
Both Luke Campbell and Ryan Garcia saw potential opponents go in another direction. So it only makes sense for them to turn to each other.
The World Boxing Council (WBC) ordered the top-tier lightweights to face each other in a crowded division that could use some separating between the contenders and pretenders. The winner would eventually get a crack at WBC lightweight champion Devin Haney.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic took hold of boxing, Ryan Garcia was penciled in to face Jorge Linares. But the pandemic threw everything into disarray. Garcia and Golden Boy Promotions couldn't get on the same page, and Linares opted to move in a different direction with his announced August fight with Javier Fortuna on August 28.
Campbell (20-3, 16 KOs) was initially slated to face Fortuna for the interim WBC lightweight title, but the pandemic pushed those plans back and Fortuna opted to face Linares.
Eddie Hearn took to Twitter to show his excitement for a potential showdown between the two.
Garcia (20-0, 17 KOs) is coming off of a devastating first-round knockout of Francisco Fonseca in February. The 21-year-old was also excited to see the WBC order that he fight Campbell.
Campbell hasn't fought since dropping a decision to Vasyl Lomachenko last August. He also appears to be quite interested in a fight against the undefeated Garcia.Although the WBC has ordered the fight, neither fighter is forced to accept as the two sides will need to negotiate terms. But both fighters appear to be on board for this fight to come to fruition.
