On Saturday, July 26th Puerto Rican prospect Xander Zayas will be fighting Jorge Garcia Perez. This fight will be a big step forward being the first world title fight of each of their respective careers. Zayaz and Garcia will be fighting for the vacant WBO junior middleweight title live at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in NYC and will be presented live on ESPN and ESPN+ via Top Rank.
Zayas (21-0, 13KOs) has a BIG following in New York and a lot of Puerto Rican fans will be in attendance to show support to the sensational Puerto Rican Prospect who fights out of South Florida. Zayas was ordered to be the mandatory title contender for Sebastian Fundora (22-1-1, 14KOs) who opted out to vacate for an immediate rematch with Tim Tszyu (25-2, 18KOs) which will take place July 19th. Zayas was confirmed as the WBO mandatory challenger since the WBO acknowledged Terrence Crawford moving up to take on Canelo in a super middleweight super fight! Zayas always shows out at MSG with his last fight solidifying his chance to fight for a title with a ninth-round knockout of previously unbeaten Slawa Somper. The 22 year old Zayas is sharp, technical, and can punch. Zayas gets better every fight and incorporates textbook style offense and defense with electrifying sharpness and precision to annihilate his prey and put on a show.
”This is a dream I’ve worked hard for my entire life. I’ve got a good opponent in Jorge Garcia, a Mexican hungry to become a world champion,” Zayas said. “But I’m ready to raise the Puerto Rican flag high in victory and become a world champion at 22 years old. See you all on July 26.”
Garcia (33-4, 26KOs), the man they chose to stand opposite of Zayas in this contest, has a lot of experience and with an eight-fight win streak was seen as the next highest-rated and available contender who in his last fight secured a win against the 2016 U.S Olympian and previously unbeaten professional, Charles Conwell. The tough and resilient Mexican Garcia will be Zayas’ toughest challenge yet also putting the ever so familiar trope of Puerto Rican and Mexican Rivalry in boxing at play here as well. This fight will be explosive and entertaining giving the winner their first taste of championship glory!
“A lot of people thought I wasn’t going to win my last fight, but I scored a stunning upset,” said Garcia. “Even though I was the underdog, I shocked the world. This fight won’t be any different. Becoming a world champion is my dream, and I’m ready to make it come true on July 26 with a dominant win over Xander Zayas. Mexico will have a new champion this summer.”
Also on the card we have another prospect fighting for their first taste of a title, Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington (15-0, 9KOs) who is the number one ranked WBC featherweight who will battle the number 14 contender Mateus Heita (14-0, 9KOs) for the interim title. They will also be putting on a show as well. July 26th will be an historic night to remember so tune in on July 26th and don’t miss out on the action!
