Mikey Garcia serious about fight with Errol Spence Jr

A lot of boxing fans have a hard time believing it, it seems, but lightweight champ Mikey Garcia says he’s 100 percent serious about moving up to welterweight to fight Errol Spence Jr later this year.

From Sky Sports:

“If we can make it happen it is going to be against the top champion in the division right now. We have got Errol Spence who is the top man right now and that is who I would want to be in the ring with. I would want to share the ring with Errol Spence considering he is the top champion in the division. That is the only name that excites me that much.”

Garcia (38-0, 30 KO) has won titles at 126, 130, 135, and 140. He beat Sergey Lipinets for a 140-pound title in his last bout, but vacated that to keep his 135-pound title. Right now, he’s set to face Robert Easter Jr in a unification bout on July 28, live on Showtime from the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Getting past Easter has to happen first, of course, but Garcia is the clear favorite in that fight.

Of course, welterweight is a whole other story. Garcia would be a very small 147-pounder, or at least we assume he would be given his dimensions. Spence is listed at 5’9½” with a 72-inch reach, while Garcia is 5’6” with a 68-inch reach. He’d be giving up a lot.

But it’s a bold idea, and I think Garcia being serious about it is admirable, even if potentially ill-advised.