For years, big-time boxing in New York meant one thing: Madison Square Garden. More recently, Brooklyn’s Barclays Center joined the mix. But now, fight fans are in for something completely different — a full-blown boxing spectacle in the heart of Times Square.
“We’re expecting around half a million people — for free,” said boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya, now the head of Golden Boy Promotions. His company is promoting three of the fighters on the stacked May 2 card.
The lineup? Nothing short of fire. Ryan Garcia takes on Rolando “Rolly” Romero in the main event, Devin Haney faces Jose Ramirez in the co-main, and Teofimo Lopez squares off with Arnold Barboza Jr. to kick off the night in a title bout.
What’s still under wraps is how this whole thing will be staged, how fans can watch it live, and how organizers actually managed to shut down one of the busiest areas in one of the busiest cities in the world.
De La Hoya grinned and said simply, “It took a lot of money.”
A Comeback Story in the Spotlight
The fight card could’ve been exciting anywhere, but the backdrop of Times Square gives it an iconic edge. It’s also a major moment for Ryan Garcia, who returns after a one-year suspension. He tested positive for banned substances following his win over Haney last April in Brooklyn — a fight that was later ruled a no-contest.
Even though Garcia dropped Haney three times and won by majority decision, he had weighed in over three pounds above the limit and wasn’t eligible to claim Haney’s 140-pound title.
Garcia has since come clean about personal struggles with drinking and smoking, but says he’s turned a corner.
“I just want people to see that you can bounce back from anything,” Garcia said. “I’m owning up to my mistakes, and I want to set an example of what it means to be a real professional.”
Both Garcia and Haney have stayed out of the ring since that bout. Now, they’re returning — this time at the 147-pound welterweight limit. If both win, the plan is to run it back with a rematch.
A Historic First for Ring Magazine
This event also marks Ring Magazine’s first U.S. card under its new ownership by Turki Alalshikh, the man behind Riyadh Season and Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority.
“We could’ve held this card in Vegas, L.A., or any major arena and it would’ve sold out,” said Ring Magazine COO Rick Reeno. “But we wanted to do something historic. Something that, decades from now, people will remember and say, ‘Wow, they really did that in Times Square.’”
Outdoor Fights, Cold Weather, and Big Ambitions
Of course, an outdoor event in early May in New York raises some logistical questions — especially about the weather.
“I don’t know if you’ve been to New York in May, but it gets a little cold,” Romero joked. “They might need heaters roaming around.”
Still, De La Hoya is confident New York can handle the scale and ambition of the event.
“Come on, it’s Times Square. They pull off New Year’s Eve with millions of people,” he said. “This is going to be epic. I’m proud to be part of it.”
Ryan Garcia(-900) vs. Rolando “Rolly” Romero (+550), junior welterweights
Ryan Garcia, top, defeated Devin Haney by majority decision in a junior welterweight fight in April 2024, before the result was changed to a no contest. Cris Esqueda/Golden Boy/Getty Images
Garcia (24-1, 1 NC, 20 KOs) makes his ring return after a yearlong ban, and there will be expectation on him to deliver following his last display, despite the controversy around it.
Garcia has not fought since he dropped Haney three times in a decision win that was later ruled a no contest after he tested positive for a banned substance.
With Haney also on this unique card, the winner of this bout (especially if it is star attraction Garcia) will progress to face the victor of Haney vs. Ramirez. A rematch between Haney and Garcia in Saudi Arabia in October would generate plenty of interest.
Las Vegas resident Romero (16-2, 13 KOs) has an impressive 81% knockout ratio, but does he have the power to trouble Garcia as he steps up a third weight class? Romero, 29, lost two of his last four fights to Isaac Cruz and Gervonta Davis by stoppage. Garcia, 26, from Los Angeles, who also succumbed to Davis two years ago, throws punches with power and speed. This fight could steal the show.
Devin Haney(-1200) vs. Jose Ramirez (+650), welterweights
Former undisputed undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney, above, needs a victory in his first fight at welterweight. Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images
Haney, like Lopez, needs the spotlight after more than a year away from the ring. Haney has not fought since he suffered a major setback this past April when he was dropped three times by Garcia in a majority decision defeat. That Garcia failed to make the weight, and then failed a drug test for a banned substance to render the fight a no contest, does not totally let Haney off the hook. He couldn’t avoid Garcia’s left hook and the loss was damaging. Haney needs to make up ground or see his earning potential diminish.
This fight gives 26-year-old Haney, of Las Vegas, the chance to regain some momentum, and his slick skills should be too much for the 32-year-old Ramirez. Both will be making their welterweight debut and if Haney (31-0, 1 NC, 15 KOs) can rediscover the form he was in during 2023, when he beat Vasiliy Lomachenko and Regis Prograis, he will once again be eating at the big table.
After defeats to Barboza and Josh Taylor, Ramirez (29-2, 18 KOs), a former unified junior welterweight champion from Avenal, California, will be fighting to save his career, and that makes him dangerous.
Teofimo Lopez Jr.(-275) vs. Arnold Barboza Jr. (+210) for Lopez’s WBO junior welterweight title
Teofimo Lopez, above, defends his WBO junior welterweight title against Arnold Barboza Jr. on May 2 in New York. Al Bello/Getty Images
This is a perfect launchpad for Lopez to establish himself as boxing’s biggest star over the next year. The sport is ready for a new charismatic fighter to grab some mainstream appeal outside of the hardcore fanbase, to replace the likes of Canelo Alvarez (34), Terence Crawford (37), Oleksandr Usyk (38), and the already retired Tyson Fury (36).
Garcia vs. Romero is officially the main event, but Lopez is the highest-ranked fighter on the card — ESPN’s No. 1 at junior welterweight. Garcia, with his massive social media following, is more widely known, but Lopez, 27, from Brooklyn, New York, has a pathway to grow his profile with the prospect of a title unification fight against Richardson Hitchins for later 2025 — should he beat Barboza.
But Lopez (21-1, 13 KOs) must do better than his last outing in June when he convincingly outpointed Steve Claggett yet failed to shine, and his win over Jamaine Ortiz just over a year ago was met with boos for a lack of action.
However, Lopez, a two-division world champion, showed he can rise to an occasion when he beat then-pound-for-pound king Lomachenko in 2020, and Barboza’s threat level could bring Lopez’s best on perhaps the biggest stage of his career.
Barboza (32-0, 11 KOs), from Los Angeles, deserves this shot for his breakout win over Jack Catterall in the Englishman’s backyard of Manchester last month. Barboza, 33, won a split decision and the late bloomer will enter his first world title contest in the best form of his career after also beating former champion Jose Ramirez in November. Can he pull off an even bigger upset?
