Ryan Garcia is returning to the ring. It’s official.
The popular lightweight contender, who took time away from boxing to tend to his mental health, is scheduled to fight Emmanuel Tagoe on April 9 at the Alamodome in San Antonio.
Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs) was last in the ring in January of last year, when he stopped Luke Campbell with a body shot in the seventh round.
“I’m very excited. It’s been a long time, 15 months or so,” Garcia said at the kickoff news conference Wednesday in Los Angeles.
Garcia was one of the hottest boxers in the world at the time he took a break, both in terms of his success in the ring and his following on social media.
He expects to pick up where he left off against Tagoe (32-1, 15 KOs), a Ghanaian fighter who lost his pro debut but has been undefeated since.
“I had a vision when I was young,” said Garcia, 23. “I said this social media is going to play a big part in the game. I took advantage of that. And I wanted people to know the kid from Victorville (California). And that’s how I was able to show people that, ‘Yo, I’m coming.’
“And now it’s time to actually show it because everybody knows who I am. … Now I’m ready to go on a 20-year reign, maybe more.”
Tagoe is coming off a majority-decision victory over Mason Mennard in November 2020, meaning he will have been out of the ring longer than Garcia.
The 33-year-old resident of Accra is confident that he can beat Garcia.
“I know people don’t know me, but after this fight, people are going to ask, ‘Who is this guy!’? Tagoe said.
Of course, Garcia, working with new trainer Joe Goossen, is confident too, although he insists that he isn’t looking past Tagoe toward lucrative fights against top 135-pounders like George Kambosos, Devin Haney and Vasiliy Lomachenko.
“I have been boxing my whole life,” he said. “I know what it takes. I know the discipline you need, the sacrifices you have to make. What makes me feel confident is all the experience I have in the ring, over 200 amateur fights, 21 professional, been in some top training camps. I feel very comfortable and confident.
“I know whomever is in front of me, it will not be easy, that’s for sure. If it’s a quick or a long fight, I am ready for whatever.”