Oscar De La Hoya has no interest in seeing Ryan Garcia run it back with Rolando “Rolly” Romero and he’s not hiding it at all. Despite reports of a potential rematch in the works between Garcia and Romero, De La Hoya made it clear over the weekend that the proposed sequel doesn’t excite him in the slightest. The Hall of Fame fighter-turned-promoter believes the original fight failed to deliver both in the ring and with fans and doesn’t merit a second look.
“No, I actually don’t,” De La Hoya told DAZN’s Chris Mannix during Saturday’s broadcast in Chicago, when asked if he was on board with a Romero Garcia rematch. “Because the first fight was a dull fight. When you’re a promoter and you’re trying to make rematches, it’s because people want to see it.”
The May 2 bout at Time Square, New York saw Romero (17-2, 13 KOs) defeat Garcia (24-2, 20 KOs) by unanimous decision. In what was widely criticized as a lackluster affair. Aside from a second round knockdown scored by Romero, the action was sparse with the fighters combining for just 490 punches over 12 rounds, the fourth lowest total in Compubox history for a full length bout.
Romero walked away with the WBA “World” welterweight title. Which is a secondary belt that has since become the full version after Jaron “Boots” Ennis vacated both the WBA and IBF titles to move up to junior middleweight.
Rolly not a big enough name
Still, Oscar De La Hoya isn’t sold on Romero as the next logical opponent for his star client.
“The first fight wasn’t that entertaining, the first fight wasn’t a big deal,” he said. “So, I believe there are other opponents out there for Ryan. There are other big names out there. Other big fights we can make with the likes of Teofimo Lopez and other fighters out there.”
Teofimo Lopez (22-1, 13 KOs), the reigning lineal and WBO junior welterweight champion. Fought on the same May 2 card, defeating Arnold Barboza via unanimous decision. In a performance that stood out from the rest of the evening. Lopez was also the most outspoken fighter in the lead up to the event. Generating buzz that the rest of the card struggled to match.
While Romero appears open to a rematch. Garcia has yet to confirm his next move. Oscar De La Hoya made one thing clear, before anything happens, Garcia’s health must come first.
“First things first, I need Ryan to be in great health,” De La Hoya emphasized.
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Robert LaMar is a writer for Dice City Sports. You can follow him on X via @RobertLaMar26
