Ryan Garcia was scheduled to make his highly anticipated return on Saturday, Nov. 27, against WBC interim lightweight champion JoJo Diaz.
Boxing fans will have to wait until 2022 for "KingRy" to step through the ropes as Garcia suffered a serious hand injury during a training session and is forced out of the fight. He will be undergoing surgery to repair his right wrist on Monday in Los Angeles by renowned orthopedic hand specialist Dr. Steven Shin at the Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Surgery Center.
"I want to thank my fans for all the continued support," Garcia said in a statement on Twitter. "We are postponing my next fight for a couple of months as a result of a significant hand injury that requires immediate surgery. I will undergo surgery at Cedars-Sinai on Monday. I promise early 2022, I will return better!
Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs) was looking to continue his ascent in the lightweight division after getting knocked down for the first time in his career and then rebounding to stop Luke Campbell in the seventh round on Jan. 2.
“Ryan is a very resilient young man,” Oscar De La Hoya, chairman and CEO of Golden Boy, said. “We hope he takes the necessary time to heal and recover. As a fighter, I understand the importance of taking hand injuries seriously, and I am glad Ryan is doing the right thing and addressing the injury quickly. We wish him a speedy recovery.”