By: Sean Crose
“I want to fight @mikeygarcia NEXT. He says he want the fight, I want the fight, his brother Robert wants the fight, my side wants the fight, the Mexican fans want the fight, the people in New Orleans want the fight, the English fans want the fight. MAKE IT HAPPEN”
The above tweet was posted by the former WBA and WBC lightweight titlist Regis Prograis. As Prograis recently told FightHype: “I think realistically, probably me and Mikey Garcia (will fight). Me and Crawford probably won’t happen because I’m not going to 147 right now, I’m staying at ‘40, I want a belt at 140 again.” Now that Prograis is calling Garcia out, people are nodding in approval.
Garcia, after all, hasn’t fought since besting Jessie Vargas back in early 2020. His previous bout had been a one sided wash at the gloved hands of Errol Spence. What’s more, he recently indicated to ESNEWS that he has no plans for the immediate future. “Mikey Garcia says he wants to fight,” Prograis told Fight Hype. “I want the fight, I talked to Robert Garcia, his brother, he says he’s interested in the fight. I think a lot of people are interested in the fight.”
Since being decisioned by Josh Taylor back in 2019, Prograis has scored two stoppages, against Juan Heraldez, and Iven Redkach, respectively. An exciting fighter with a colorful personality, Prograis looks as if he would be a solid, and interesting opponent for Garcia (and vice versa), who not so long ago was seen as a possible opponent for Manny Pacquiao. With Pacquiao now set to fight Spence, however, Garcia may be in the market for a name and challenging opponent. As for Prograis, he feels that fighters like Gervonta Davis have no interest in facing him. “Tank ain’t gonna come nowhere close to me,” he said to Fight Hype. Therefore, Garcia seems like he would be an obvious choice.
The 26-1 Prograis, and the 40-1 Garcia are both alike and different. Both men have dominated save for a single loss against a wildly talented foe (Garcia, for the record, actually moved up in weight for Spence). On the other hand, the 32 year year old Prograis is colorful and seems comfortable in the spotlight. The 33 year old Garcia, on the other hand, is reserved and rather deliberate. A win on behalf of either man over the other would be an impressive achievement.