“There’s no excuse”: Ryan Garcia u-turns on Shakur Stevenson fight offer

Ryan Garcia has changed his mind on the terms he had originally proposed for a clash against Shakur Stevenson.

The 27-year-old called out Stevenson immediately after his last outing, a unanimous decision victory that saw him dethrone Mario Barrios to become the WBC world welterweight champion.

Prior to claiming the title last month, though, Garcia had suffered a points defeat to Rolando Romero after getting floored in the second round.

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That particular setback came in May 2025, just over a year after he claimed a majority decision victory over Devin Haney, which was later overturned to a no-contest due to him testing positive for banned substance ostarine.

But now, having completed his year-long drugs ban and, more recently, secured a dominant victory over Barrios, it certainly seems as though Garcia has turned his career around.

Yet despite previously confirming his desire to face Stevenson at a catchweight of 144lbs, and even saying he could potentially make 140, the American has now insisted via X that he intends to remain at 147lbs.

“I started at a low weight just like you [Stevenson] so there’s no excuse for you not to come to 147[lbs] without rehydration clause????? But if you don’t want to that’s fine. I’m not forcing you to fight.”

Garcia did tip the scales as low as 127lbs at the beginning of his career, but is now a fully-fledged welterweight.

Stevenson, on the other hand, has never fought above 140lbs, which he weighed ahead of his unanimous decision victory over Teofimo Lopez in January.

The masterful performance saw him capture Lopez’s WBO super-lightweight title and, in doing so, become a four-division world champion, making the accolades of Garcia pale in comparison.

Ryan Garcia says no to Shakur Stevenson’s excessive demands

To prove that someone is the best in the world of boxing, a fighter must step into the ring with excellent preparation to be ready for any situation that may arise, especially when entering as the challenger.

This appears to be something Shakur Stevenson has not fully understood, as he continues to keep the potential fight against Ryan Garcia hanging in uncertainty. In the bout that both sides are attempting to finalize, Stevenson seems determined for his opponent to accept all of his conditions, but Garcia has delivered a firm and categorical refusal.

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The origin of the disagreement between Ryan Garcia and Shakur Stevenson

This entire dispute between the two pugilists began on social media, where nowadays it seems that if matters are not discussed publicly, they do not exist. Modern times often dictate that everything unfold in that arena, whether in sports, politics, or any other aspect of life.

Through those platforms, Stevenson accused Garcia of being a weight bully. Shakur argued that in any fight contested at 147 pounds, there must be a rehydration clause that limits Ryan’s weight on the night of the event.

The challenger suggested that Garcia could come into the fight weighing around 160 pounds, or that they could establish a fixed limit of 170 pounds. Garcia immediately rejected that proposal and made it clear that he would never accept such a condition.

I will never be on a rehydration clause again, and I don’t need 20-30 pounds to beat you,” Garcia wrote on X. “I’ll beat your ass straight up.

Shakur Stevenson

Faced with this scenario, Garcia has pointed to the fight he had in 2023 against Gervonta Davis, in which weight stipulations were included that limited how much he could weigh on the night of the bout. Later, he stated that those conditions ended up affecting him and believed that the defeat may have come partly because of that situation.

Now that it appears the same type of demand is being placed in front of him once again, Garcia has issued a definitive refusal. In a social media post, he explained that any progress toward finalizing the fight will depend on eliminating the restrictions that Stevenson’s camp wants to impose.

As long as there’s no rehydration clause, things will be going forward.

Ryan Garcia

These kinds of restrictions exist in boxing because between the official weigh-in and the night of the fight, fighters can gain a significant amount of weight that could benefit them inside the ring. That is precisely the point of tension currently holding up negotiations.

For now, the disagreement remains unresolved and continues to cloud what many fans believe could become one of the most exciting bouts in recent years. Both fighters have the talent and popularity to create a major event, but unless the contractual terms are settled, the fight will remain uncertain, and the anticipation surrounding it will continue to grow without a definitive answer about whether it will actually take place.

Shakur Stevenson agrees to Ryan Garcia’s new terms for title fight: “Let’s do it”

After claiming the WBC welterweight world title, a host of fighters are eyeing up a lucrative world title shot against Ryan Garcia, but ‘King Ry’ has announced that he is willing to head to a new weight-class in order to face another world champion.

Garcia moved up to the welterweight division after missing the super-lightweight weight limit in his controversial meeting with Devin Haney in 2024, which was followed by a one-year ban from the sport due to a failed drugs test.

‘King Ry’ was unsuccessful in a WBA welterweight title fight against Rolando Romero upon his return and debut at 147lbs, but he impressed in his second outing in the division, dominating Mario Barrios on to finally become world champion.

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Before that fight, it was expected that the victor would next defend the belt against mandatory challenger Conor Benn, but Garcia went on to call out WBO super-lightweight ruler Shakur Stevenson.

However, after stating he would fight Stevenson at a catchweight of 144lbs, Garcia has now had a change of heart and has offered to come down to super-lightweight in an attempt to become a two-division world champion.

“Forget the catchweight s**t.

“Let’s do it for real.

“I want to take your belt and snatch it right off you. @ShakurStevenson.”

Garcia missed weight by over three pounds when he was tasked with Haney, thus losing the chance to win the WBC super-lightweight title and insisted that ‘his body could not safely go lower than 143lbs’ and that he refuses ‘to kill himself to make the weight’.

As a result, there is concern amongst his fans that an attempted return to the weight could be a mistake. On social media, Garcia reassured his supporters that he will make the weight safely, before warning Stevenson not to make allegations alluding to his use of performance enhancing drugs.

“To those that are worried about the 140 pound weight. I will tell you this, it was my plan to be able to also win at 140.

“As long as there’s no rehydration clause things will be going forward.

“Testing always included, I’ve never shy’d away from that. For Shakur to assume I’m on steroids, that is defamation. So I would advise you to refrain yourself, I know you are deep down scared and you should have fear. I’m coming for you.

“Fear the lord.”

In response, Stevenson accepted the challenge from Garcia and opened the door for a potential super-fight in the 140lb division.

“That’s my opinion, you can’t sue nobody for their opinion, You a boxer, champ, wassup with all the suing tactics anyway? 140. Let’s do it, chump.”

A Stevenson-Garcia title fight at 140lbs would undoubtedly be one of the biggest fights that could be made in the sport.