Mikey Garcia was in attendance along with over 70,000 others to watch Canelo Alvarez continue his collection of super-middleweight titles at the expense of Billy Joe Saunders. And the former featherweight, super-featherweight, lightweight and light-welterweight champion of the world has his own megafight planned, against the legendary Manny Pacquiao.
Pacquiao is the only boxer to have claimed world honours in eight different weight classes, with Canelo and Garcia two of the closest modern-day fighters to that unprecedented achievement. Now in his forties, Pacquiao seems set to retire for good within the next year to focus on politics in his native Philippines.
At the Canelo-Saunders fight, Garcia told World Boxing News that he is indeed negotiating to be perhaps Pacquiao's final opponent. But he warned that he will not wait forever.
“We’ve always been interested in a fight with Manny Pacquiao. Last few months, the conversations came up many, many times,” Garcia said.
“We started developing a good idea, a plan, a proposal, but it hasn’t really happened. Nothing solid. So, if that’s the case, I’m ready to move on and search for another fight, possibly to get a fight in July, August and maybe that could set me up for something bigger before the end of the year."
Garcia hasn't fought since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and like most boxers in a similar situation it makes him even more anxious to break that absence and get back into the swing of things.
“I’m ready to get back in the ring," he admitted. "That’s what I want to do.
"I want to get back in the ring, show my fans and everybody that I’m here, that I haven’t left. We’ve been absent for over a year now after the fight with (Jessie) Vargas, but many fighters have had absences due to the pandemic. We want to get back. We’re ready.”