Ryan Garcia is on the prowl for his next dance partner. However, he is not willing to make the same mistake as before to lure Shakur Stevenson into the ring. The Victorville native defeated Mario Barrios last month to become the WBC welterweight champion. And immediately after, called out Stevenson for a fight. While the Newark native is open to the idea of moving to welterweight, there’s one condition Stevenson wants Garcia to fulfill. 

“If a guy is gonna blow up to, let’s say, what? We’ll just do Ryan Garcia and me, for example,” Stevenson told Joe Rogan at JRE MMA Show #175. “I’m gonna blow up like 148. He’s gonna blow up 168 to 170. Now, it’s like you in a ring with somebody [who] is 20 pounds bigger than you. Now, the rehydration clause is kind of crazy, but I will only do a rehydration clause for fighters if I go up to 147 pounds.”

Clearly, Shakur Stevenson doesn’t want to take the fight without a rehydration clause in the mix, fearing Ryan Garcia will turn into a weight bully. If you didn’t know, it’s a contractual rule that limits how much weight a fighter, or both, can regain after the official weigh-in and before the fight. Regardless, ‘King Ry’ doesn’t want a rehydration clause in their contract to make the super fight happen. 

“[Shakur] is clearly scared,” Garcia responded to Stevenson’s demand on X. “I’m nowhere near what he is saying. I will never be on a rehydration clause again, and I don’t need 20-30 pounds to beat you. I’ll beat your a— straight up. You are terrified, your whole crew [is] terrified.”

Garcia fought Gervonta Davis in April 2023 at a catchweight of 136 lbs, with a strict 10-pound rehydration limit. He was visibly drained before entering the fight. Despite that, ‘King Ry’ was dominating initially, but ‘Tank’ Davis’ devastating power dropped him twice before losing via stoppage in the seventh round. 

On the flip side, Stevenson is coming off a one-sided win over Teofimo Lopez in the super lightweight division. This was his debut in the division, and he hasn’t had much experience beyond it. Considering this, if he decides to move up, he will have to gain seven pounds, and if his theory about Garcia ballooning up to 170 on fight night is true, he will have to gain another 23 pounds. 

So, if the pair can’t find a middle ground, the super fight may not happen. However, Ryan Garcia has another super fight at his disposal. 

Devin Haney claims Ryan Garcia has to be realistic for a rematch

For Ryan Garcia, a fight against Devin Haney is much bigger than Shakur Stevenson, especially because of their first fight. Even though Garcia won via a majority decision, the April 2024 bout was later ruled a no-contest after Garcia tested positive for Ostarine. There was supposed to be a rematch last year, but Garcia’s loss to Rolando Romero derailed that bout.

Now, with Garcia winning the WBC welterweight belt, the timing is perfect for a unification fight against Haney, who defeated Brian Norman Jr. to get his hands on the WBO strap. However, talks for a fight don’t appear to be heading in the right direction. Speaking on Inside The Ring, Haney made it clear that the rematch depends on Garcia’s approach to making the deal.

“The Ryan Garcia fight is the biggest fight in boxing, in my opinion,” Haney said. “It does so much for me and my career, my resume, but he has to be realistic in these negotiations. I’m not here to just take anything.

Haney revealed that their early discussions via personal DMs on social media stalled when Garcia immediately took the upper hand.

“The first thing he said was, ‘Hey, I’m just letting you know I’m the A-side,’” Haney said. “One, we haven’t even started really negotiating to even say what’s the A side or a B side… The deals are so lucrative that you don’t really care.”

That being said, Garcia’s next step appears to be complicated. On one hand, he doesn’t want a rehydration clause to fight Shakur Stevenson. And on the other hand, he expects crazy money for the Devin Haney rematch. Who do you think he will end up fighting?