Four-division champion Mikey Garcia and former WBA 140lbs king Regis Prograis are in advanced negotiations for an intriguing battle in the autumn.
The 140lbs bout would be staged in the US and streamed live on DAZN, both fighters and promoter Eddie Hearn told Mike Coppinger of ESPN.com.
Having campaigned as high as 147lbs where he suffered his sole professional loss against Errol Spence, Garcia says he feels more suited to the super-lightweight division. A fight with Prograis is the right fight at the right time, he feels.
“I think it’s a great match-up for a few reasons being that he’s an aggressive fighter, he’s accomplished, former world champion and he’s also hungry to regain that position and have a big victory,” Californian Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) told ESPN.com. “I want to get back, I want to do big things, I want to be able to challenge for a world title again and be a world champion so I think those are the elements that make it a great match-up.”
Former WBA champion Prograis (26-1, 22 KOs) believes that a Garcia bout is the biggest fight to be made at 140lbs, something undisputed champion and former foe Josh Taylor would naturally dispute. The New Orleans-born Prograis lost a narrow, majority decision to the Scot in October 2019 but has since rebounded with two stoppage wins.
“I think it’s the biggest fight at 140,” Prograis (26-1, 22 KOs) told ESPN.com. “He has a big name; I have a big name right now. All sides want it. Sometimes one side don’t want it and the other side tries to push it. But with me and Mikey, I want it, he wants it. I talked to his brother [trainer Robert Garcia] on FaceTime; he wants it.
“I think it’s going to be a huge, huge fight. I do want to fight the best; I’ve been telling you I want to be a champion again. If I can’t get Josh Taylor, I think Mikey is bigger than anybody right now.”