The hugely anticipated world lightweight championship showdown between Jorge Linares and Mikey Garcia could very much be on the cards, after the WBC ordered the two to come to an agreement at their recent convention but what they didn’t specify was any timeframe for the fight to happen.
According to the man who goes by the alias, ‘El Niño de Oro’ there have been communications going back and forth between himself and Garcia (37-0, 30 KOs) and the two of them are believed to be ready to come to an agreement for a blockbuster 2018 clash. It is also worthy to note, Garcia turned down the overtures of Golden Boy Promotions recently with the promise of lucrative clashes with both Jorge Linares and Miguel Cotto being turned down, with the sticking point to the deal coming from Garcia’s insistence to not relinquish promotional control to Golden Boy.
However, Golden Boy Promotions president Eric Gomez is believed to be locked in negotiations with the focus on delivering the clash between Garcia and Linares at the earliest possible opportunity.
Linares shared his admiration for his contemporary before explaining if a deal is indeed concluded between the pair, it will not be a clear cut walk in the park for either party. “He sent me a message, I sent him a message, he agrees to fight me, I agree to fight him, everyone wants the fight. It will not be an easy fight for him or for me. He has his audience, I have mine. He has my respect too, I think he’s one of the best at 135 pounds. He is the one that I want, we only wait for the promoter to reach an agreement and I think that it’s better to face Mikey, not so much monetarily, but for motivation, to fight with the best of the best, because he is the best and that is what I want and he wants, nothing more than to stage the fight,” Linares told ESPN Deportes.
“I would come at my best, the experience I have today favours me a lot. He is a good boxer, quite tough, he is Mexican – and I have always had respect for Mexicans even though I lost with three of them. I have no problem with that. Now I’m on another level, I’m in the best moment of my career but I know it will not be easy, neither for him nor for me” Linares concluded.