By: Hans Themistode
Lightweight contenders Ryan Garcia and Luke Campbell have told everyone for months that this fight was of the utmost importance. So it came as no surprise when both jumped onto the scales completely shredded for their main event tomorrow night at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
First up was the definitive underdog in Campbell. Covered in the now traditional face mask and shoe coverings, Campbell (20-3, 16 KOs) stepped onto the scale at 135 pounds even. Immediately following him was Garcia as he shadowed boxed in the background before weighing in at 135 pounds as well.
Immediately following the weigh-ins, both fighters waited while a glass window was set up as part of the social distancing protocols. From there, they stared at one another for one final time before they meet tomorrow night.
For Campbell, his showdown against Garcia (20-0, 17 KOs) will represent his first since a unanimous decision loss to Vasiliy Lomachenko roughly 16 months ago. His recent inactivity has been due to various reasons which include contracting COVID-19 in early November. Despite the time spent on the sidelines, Campbell has been unnerved during the build-up.
“I think I’ll break him down, hurt him and stop him late,” said Campbell during a recent interview with Dailymail.
Talk of Campbell scoring the stoppage win against Garcia would come as a surprise to the betting public and to the millions of followers the California native has garnered over the years across his social media platforms.
With trainer Eddy Reynoso and pound for pound star Canelo Alvarez firmly in his corner since 2018, Garcia has scored four straight wins, his latest two coming via first-round stoppage.
The entire event will be shown on the streaming app DAZN. Fans stateside will have to tune in earlier than normal as things kick off at 3 p.m. eastern time with the main event slated to begin roughly four hours later at 7 p.m.