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Mike CoppingerESPN
The deal for the planned April 15 superfight between Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia hasn’t yet been completed because of a dispute over the rematch clause, Garcia’s promoter, Oscar De La Hoya, told ESPN on Monday.
De La Hoya received the contract two weeks ago and said every other issue has been resolved. “It boils down to who’s going to control the rematch,” he said.
“We’re literally down at the 1-yard line; what’s holding everything up is the rematch clause,” said De La Hoya, the Hall of Fame boxer who founded Golden Boy Promotions. “It’s only fair if Ryan wins, then our side controls everything as the A-side. This is just the way it always has been. … It’s common sense that whoever wins is the A-side. That’s the bottom line. We’re not reinventing the wheel here.”
The rematch clause is unilateral and can be triggered by Davis only in the event he loses, De La Hoya said. Typically, boxers have 30 days to activate the rematch clause.
The unresolved issue pertains to the network and lead promoter of the potential return bout. Davis is promoted by Al Haymon’s Premier Boxing Champions and fights exclusively on Showtime, while Garcia competes on DAZN.
The sides agreed that the 136-pound catchweight pay-per-view, which is slated to take place at a venue in Las Vegas, would be produced and distributed by Showtime with PBC as the lead promoter. If Garcia (23-0, 19 KOs) wins and the rematch clause is activated, Golden Boy and DAZN argue that their side should be the lead promoter and PPV producer/distributor.
PBC and Showtime maintain that the promoter and network should remain the same for a potential encore bout. A Showtime representative declined comment when reached Monday.
“Al Haymon is dictating everything. … They’ve asked for this, asked for that,” De La Hoya said. “Who comes out first, the penalties if Ryan comes overweight. We’ve given in, we’ve negotiated, and everything has been very pleasant. If Ryan loses, sure, there’s no rematch.
“It’s been a pleasant negotiation, it really has. I really hope their side doesn’t fumble the ball and we have no Super Bowl. … We at Golden Boy are just protecting our TV partners. It’s only fair that everything gets switched around if Ryan wins.”
Davis (28-0, 26 KOs) will earn the lion’s share of revenue for the first fight, per sources, and is the betting favorite to win the bout. The 24-year-old native of Baltimore defeated Hector Luis Garcia (no relation) last month via ninth-round TKO to keep the Ryan Garcia matchup intact.
Garcia, 24, bypassed a planned tuneup bout in late January to head straight into the fight with Davis that is now in jeopardy. However, both sides remain optimistic the issue will be ironed out.
The matchup is arguably the biggest commercial event in all of boxing. Davis is one of the sport’s marquee attractions and has sold out arenas all over the U.S., despite never sharing the ring with a fellow star.
Garcia, who fights out of Southern California, boasts over 9 million followers on Instagram and is a genuine star in his own right.
“We’re holding strong because we know it’s fair and we feel 1,000% this fight is going to be made and be the biggest fight of the past few years,” De La Hoya said.
Davis must also first attend to a Feb. 16 trial in Baltimore, where he’s accused of fleeing the scene of a car accident that involved four other people, including a pregnant woman.