144-pound catchweight by Ryan Garcia-Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz Clash

Ryan Garcia vs. Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz is still in negotiations, looking for a possible catch weight of 144 pounds for their welterweight showdown in May in Times Square in Manhattan, New York. This is Turki Al-Sheikh’s double header event, with Devin Haney fighting former WBC and WBO light welterweight champion Jose Ramirez in a risky setup.

Garcia-Cruz at 144

Fighting at welterweight isn’t ideal for the short 5’4″ Cruz (26-3-1, 18 KOs) because he was small, even when he was fighting at lightweight. It will be interesting to see if Pitbull has more power at 144. If he is still more dangerous at that weight than at 140, Kingry (24-1, 20 KOs) could be in for a tough fight.

A nightmare for Turki would be for Garcia and Haney to lose their set-up fights on the same night, sending them into the October rematch after humiliating defeats. Ryan has a lot of pride and could resist fighting Haney without at least trying to avenge his loss to Cruz by fighting him in October. It’s up to Turki if he would still want Garcia and Haney to fight after the losses.

Haney’s opponent, 2012 US Olympian Jose Ramirez (29-2, 18 KOs), may have too much talent for him. This is a guy that Devin would have had trouble beating even before Ryan whipped him last April, but after this loss, he will be vulnerable against a hitter like Ramirez.

Haney faces Ramirez

When Haney agreed to fight Ramirez, he might have thought he had another Regis Prograis he could dispatch with his jab and grab. However, Ramirez is a much better fighter than Prograis, and the tricks Haney used against Regis (constant grappling, jabbing and movement) won’t work as well against the experienced Ramirez. He has often dealt with these types of fighters during his amateur and professional career.

Update: Talks continue for #GarciaCruz… there is no financial agreement yet and a catch weight of 144 pounds is possible.

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— Salvador Rodríguez (@ChavaESPN) January 19, 2025